Preview
All Ireland League
City of Derry RFC V Ballymena
Saturday 11th January 2014 @ Judges Road, Kick-off; 2.30pm
By; Moss Dineen
The biggest game of the season for City of Derry Rugby Club comes on Saturday in their quest for promotion to All Ireland League Division 1B. They play hosts to Ballymena in the All Ireland League Division 2A Match of the Day @ Judges Road with a 2.30pm Kick-off. Derry had been in top spot in the table until they suffered their first defeat of the season last time out away to Queens when they were comprehensively beaten by 31pts to 5pts.
Ballymena were replaced at the summit by Galwegians last weekend following the Men of Connacht’s 11pts to 7pts win at Banbridge. Galwegians are now one point ahead of Ballymena in the league who in turn are two points ahead of City of Derry and Queens in joint third position with all teams having played seven games.
Derry and Ballymena met twice last season both times at Eaton Park. The first was last November twelve months in the Ulster Senior Cup S/Final which Ballymena won by 19pts to 12pts. That was a poor game dominated by one red card and three yellow cards issued to Derry players. The Judges Road men made up for that performance in the last Ulster League Fixture of the season in April when they comprehensively overcame the Bairdmen scoring eight try’s in a 54pts to 19pts victory. Derry winger David Graham was Man of the Math on the night as he completed a hat trick in a famous victory at Eaton Park.
Ballymena were relegated from All Ireland League Division 1B last season and this is their first season ever in the same AIL league as City of Derry. They came to Derry at the beginning of September for an Ulster League fixture intent on wiping away the memory of their heavy loss at the hands of the Judges Road men last April. The game was played in a negative mode as the Bairdmen tried to stop Derry playing and as the game progressed it became more fractious with players frustration resulting in a red and yellow card each being flashed to both sides.
City of Derry Coaches Mark Nicholl and Ashley Blair will be happy to see the return of some of their injured players this weekend. Josh Lewis and Simon Logue are back from injury and start on the wing and full back respectively. The half back partnership of Jack Caithness at scrum half and Andrew Semple at out half has worked well so far and will continue.. Chris Barber looks like he will be out for the season with a shoulder injury. William McCleery is still out but Captain David Funston had a late fitness test last night and will be on the bench, The pack sees David Ferguson, Stephen Dickey and Chris Shields returning from injury with David Houston and Stephen Jefferson the only forwards still out injured and Stephen Ferguson not available, Derry can still boast a powerful pack.
The biggest crowd of the season will be expected at Judges Road on Saturday for a fixture that everyone has looked forward to all season. It was always expected that Saturdays outcome would be a defining result for both Clubs and their ambitions for promotion could be decided as early as January with only half the AIL season gone. Derry will look to their pack to set the foundation for victory and with a dangerous backline given quality ball the expectation of victory will be high.
City of Derry RFC Team V Ballymena AIL : Chris Shields, David Ferguson, Sam Duffy, Chris Cooper, Paul McFeely, Stephen Corr, Stephen Dickey, Richard Baird, Jack Caithness, Andrew Semple, Ryan Campbell, Adam Bratton, Neil Burns, Josh Lewis, Simon Logue. Replacements: Sam McAuley, Gareth Beatty, Bob McKillop, Mark Robinson, David Funston.
