Ballymoney RFC Notes: Festive Derby Preview I XVII v Coleraine RFC I XVII

Coleraine Christmas Cracker – 28/12
By Andy Borthwick, 21st Dec 2013

Ballymoney travel to Coleraine on the return of the festive derby.

Saturday 28th sees the return of the festive fixture between Coleraine and Ballymoney, with Rugby Road the venue for this year’s encounter.

The first meeting in the season was a tight affair, with an early Coleraine lead nearly being beaten back by a developing Ballymoney side – finishing 21-22 in Coleraine’s favour, but they would have been glad to hear the final whistle.

Since then fortune has largely favoured the Toon, with good wins over Donaghadee, Bangor, and CIYMS helping them to a top half position.

Coleraine have had a lot of changes this season, and as such have struggled to get over the line on occasion. However, good win over Donaghadee and U.U.C. have been backed up by a solid run to the semi final of the Junior Cup, losing out to Ballyclare on the day.

With the damage from a tightly contested battle with Clogher still to be assessed, Ballymoney hope to choose from mostly the same 17, plus Nevin, Clyde, and Blair from recent weeks.

Kick off is at 2:30 in Coleraine. It is hoped that a great turnout from both sets of supporters will help make the return of this festive derby fixture a staple in the seasonal calendar once again.