Dungannon Swifts host Carrick Rangers in the Northern Ireland Premiership. Both sides made decent starts to the season but have cooled off through September, swapping wins for draws and defeats in recent weeks.
Dungannon currently sit above Carrick Rangers in the table, though the gap isn't huge this early in the campaign. The two clubs have met often down the years without either side dominating, which leaves this one open.
Analysis updated .
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Recent form: both teams have stalled
Dungannon won four Premiership matches in a row through August, but their last three have brought a draw and two defeats, including a heavy 0-3 loss away to Crusaders and a 0-1 home reverse against Linfield.
Dungannon Swifts: 20 completed matches; Carrick Rangers: 20 completed matches.
Dungannon Swifts
- Win
- 60% 12 / 20
- Draw
- 15% 3 / 20
- Loss
- 25% 5 / 20
- Scored
- 37
- Conceded
- 21
- Difference
- +16
Carrick Rangers
- Win
- 50% 10 / 20
- Draw
- 10% 2 / 20
- Loss
- 40% 8 / 20
- Scored
- 44
- Conceded
- 32
- Difference
- +12
| League | Home | Away | Date | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Ballymena United | 19.09.2026 | 1-1 |
| Premiership | Crusaders FC | Dungannon Swifts | 15.09.2026 | 3-0 |
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Linfield | 12.09.2026 | 0-1 |
| Premiership | Limavady United | Dungannon Swifts | 05.09.2026 | 0-2 |
| Premiership | Cliftonville FC | Dungannon Swifts | 29.08.2026 | 0-2 |
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Bangor | 22.08.2026 | 2-0 |
| Premiership | Portadown | Dungannon Swifts | 15.08.2026 | 0-1 |
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Coleraine FC | 08.08.2026 | 1-3 |
| Friendlies Clubs | Moyola Park | Dungannon Swifts | 01.08.2026 | 0-3 |
| Friendlies Clubs | H&W Welders | Dungannon Swifts | 25.07.2026 | 1-1 |
| League | Home | Away | Date | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiership | Glentoran | Carrick Rangers | 26.09.2026 | 2-0 |
| Premiership | Carrick Rangers | Larne | 19.09.2026 | 2-5 |
| Premiership | Ballymena United | Carrick Rangers | 15.09.2026 | 1-1 |
| Premiership | Carrick Rangers | Cliftonville FC | 12.09.2026 | 1-3 |
| Premiership | Linfield | Carrick Rangers | 05.09.2026 | 1-0 |
| Premiership | Bangor | Carrick Rangers | 29.08.2026 | 0-4 |
| Premiership | Carrick Rangers | Coleraine FC | 22.08.2026 | 0-2 |
| Premiership | Limavady United | Carrick Rangers | 15.08.2026 | 1-2 |
| Premiership | Carrick Rangers | Portadown | 08.08.2026 | 1-0 |
| Friendlies Clubs | Ballyclare Comrades | Carrick Rangers | 01.08.2026 | 1-8 |
Carrick Rangers have had it worse. Their last four league games have produced just one point, with a 2-5 home defeat to Larne and a 1-3 home loss to Cliftonville standing out as particularly rough.
Neither team arrives with much momentum, but Carrick's defensive form looks the shakier of the two.
Comparative Team Statistics: Dungannon Swifts vs Carrick Rangers
Head-to-head: a fixture that swings both ways
The most recent meeting in May saw Dungannon win 3-1 at home, but Carrick hit back with a 5-1 win in the reverse fixture back in January. Before that, the two drew 3-3 in December.
| League | Home | Away | Date | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Carrick Rangers | 06.05.2026 | 3-1 |
| Premiership | Carrick Rangers | Dungannon Swifts | 24.01.2026 | 5-1 |
| Premiership | Carrick Rangers | Dungannon Swifts | 13.12.2025 | 3-3 |
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Carrick Rangers | 23.08.2025 | 0-2 |
| Irish Cup | Carrick Rangers | Dungannon Swifts | 01.03.2025 | 1-3 |
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Carrick Rangers | 15.02.2025 | 3-1 |
| Premiership | Carrick Rangers | Dungannon Swifts | 23.11.2024 | 0-1 |
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Carrick Rangers | 28.09.2024 | 4-0 |
| Premiership | Dungannon Swifts | Carrick Rangers | 06.04.2024 | 3-2 |
| Premiership | Carrick Rangers | Dungannon Swifts | 17.02.2024 | 2-1 |
Across their recent meetings there's no clear pattern of home dominance, and goals have flowed fairly freely on both sides.
This fixture rarely stays tight for long, so a cagey 0-0 feels unlikely.
League table snapshot
Dungannon Swifts sit fourth with 13 points from eight games, having won four, drawn one and lost three, scoring nine and conceding eight.
| № | Team | Played | Win | Draw | Loss | GF/GA | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Glentoran | 9 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 13/10 | 13 |
| 6 | Dungannon Swifts | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 9/8 | 13 |
| 7 | Cliftonville FC | 9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 12/11 | 12 |
| 8 | Carrick Rangers | 9 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 11/15 | 10 |
| 9 | Ballymena United | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 12/11 | 9 |
Carrick Rangers are eighth with 10 points from the same number of matches, winning three, drawing one and losing four, with 11 scored and 13 conceded.
It's early season, so the gap between them is more suggestion than certainty.
Team news
Carrick Rangers are set to be without C. Stewart, listed as missing this fixture following an operation. There's no equivalent fresh injury detail available for Dungannon.
Squad lists and player details
Squad and player details
| Name | Country | Age | Position | Height | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G. Bigirimana | Burundi | 32 | Midfielder | 173 | 71 |
| S. McAllister | Northern Ireland | 24 | Midfielder | 179 | n/a |
| Name | Country | Age | Position | Height | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P. Heatley | Northern Ireland | 39 | Attacker | n/a | n/a |
| A. Mitchell | Northern Ireland | 34 | Midfielder | 180 cm | n/a |
| K. Cherry | Northern Ireland | 33 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| E. McGuckin | Northern Ireland | 35 | Attacker | n/a | n/a |
| C. Allen | Northern Ireland | 38 | Attacker | 180 cm | n/a |
| N. Maciulaitis | Lithuania | 27 | Attacker | n/a | n/a |
| R. Kalla | Northern Ireland | 23 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| D. Purkis | Northern Ireland | 31 | Attacker | n/a | n/a |
| L. Mackinnon | Northern Ireland | 23 | Defender | n/a | n/a |
| J. Andrews | Northern Ireland | 22 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| W. Arnold | Australia | 22 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| S. Graham | Northern Ireland | 22 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| J. Withers | Northern Ireland | 21 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| P. O'Prey | Northern Ireland | 22 | Attacker | n/a | n/a |
| C. Mills | Northern Ireland | 22 | Defender | n/a | n/a |
| J. Sobecki | Poland | 21 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| O. Robinson | Northern Ireland | 21 | Defender | n/a | n/a |
| J. Given | Northern Ireland | 20 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| J. Kelly | Northern Ireland | 20 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
| G. Trimble | Northern Ireland | 20 | Midfielder | n/a | n/a |
With no market to weigh up and both sides wobbling at the same time, there's nothing here that points clearly one way. Carrick's recent defensive record is a concern, but Dungannon's own three-game dip means they're not exactly steady either.
Given that mix, we're not backing a specific outcome for this one. It reads as too unpredictable right now to make a confident call.
Who will win?
