Despite the scheduling of the Ulster v Leinster match last Sat afternoon, thousands of supporters turned out across the province to support their Community Clubs in the AIL and Towns Cup fixtures. Ballynahinch lost a pulsating match with UCD in Dublin, 31 – 24 to secure a valuable losing bonus point. In the Ulster derby at Eaton Park, Ballymena finished strongly, to turn around a 13 – 3 deficit against Belfast Harlequins to win 17 – 13 in front of 300/350 supporters, with Malone picking up a much needed 27 – 11 home win over Galway Corinthians. In the Towns Cup there were wins for Coleraine over Ballymoney with over 1,000+ spectators turning up to watch this match. Carrickfergus against Ballyclare and the surprising defeat of Junior Cup finalists Omagh at Armagh. The second round draw has thrown up several interesting derby matches to be played on the 24th January with Portadown against Dromore, Donaghadee v Holywood, Banbridge v Ballynahinch and Larne against Ballymena. Delighted to hear that Portadown rugby club will host the final of the All Ireland Junior Cup at Chambers Park on Sat 31st January between Bangor and Dundalk.
What are the talking points in local rugby as we reach the second half of the season. I was surprised that the Ulster Branch turned down an application by CIYMS to register a Schools player after the cut off date – the 1st October. Branch regulations only permit a player to register after this date because of home and employment relocation. In this case the talented Schools player picked up a hernia injury that limited his playing time in his final year at School. The player did not expect to be fit to play any rugby this season. As a result of medical advice the player made himself available to play after the deadline date for registration with CIYMS. When the club applied to register the player the application was turned down and again at the appeal stage. My view is that in this case, are we not denying a young player the opportunity to play club rugby. Is it the case we will lose this young player to the game of rugby. I will leave it to the rugby community to judge the outcome of the Ulster Branch decision. All too often we lose too many young players to the club game because of the intensity of the School schedule. Should there not be flexibility in the registration process to allow young players to take time out. If they decide they want to return to the game should the Ulster Branch not be more accomodating. We cannot afford to lose any players coming into club rugby.
Are Ulster Rugby doing enough to support our AIL clubs in Div 1A and B as Ballynahinch push for league honours and Ballymena for promotion with Malone and Belfast Harlequins struggling to avoid relegation into Div 2A. It is noticeable how proactive the provinces of Leinster, Munster and Connacht have been in supporting their clubs in these leagues. We are well aware of the lengthy injury list experienced by Ulster rugby this season. The clubs are also well aware of the players who are allocated to them and the players who have had little match time in recent months and could have played for their clubs. It is difficult for an Ulster AIL club to play an opponent who has been allocated seven players from his province and you have only two. You can’t say it is a level playing field. AIL regulations will prohibit fully contracted provincial players from playing for their clubs in the final four AIL games unless they have played in three previous AIL matches.
Division 1A
Ballynahinch v Cork Constitution
Ballynahinch have yet to win on the road this season in the AIL with the team battling for a top four finish. Their task is no easier this weekend when they welcome fourth placed Cork Constitution to Ballymacarn Park. The Cork men are on an unbeaten six match run and are five points ahead of Hinch who are in sixth place. Hinch 1st xv Manager Ronnie Duncan is full of praise for the work put in by coaches Derek Suffern and Charlie McAleese this season. He is happy with where the players are in terms of their mental attitude and this is showing on the pitch. “The guys played well against a very accomplished UCD side last week and apart from a few loose moments which turned the result they were right in the game”. He went to say,” Injuries continue to rule out Michael Graham, Robin Harte, Kenny Morton and Steve Honey with Rodger McBurney starting a six week rehab that will see him return to playing. The club are not expecting to see too much of centre Sam Arnold due to Ireland under 20 commitments. Ulster rugby have provided no update on the availability of Ruaidri Murphy. Despite the absence of centres Robin Harte, Stuart Morrow, Sam Arnold and Richard Reaney on honeymoon, backs coach Charlie McAleese has developed an exciting midfield partnership of Jordan Gratton and Steve McCauley that have really stepped up”. There is a possibility Richard Reaney may make the bench this weekend for the 1st xv. He is full of praise for the work done by coach Derek Suffern with the forwards in developing their scrum and maul and the front row of Kyle McCall, Jonny Murphy and Jonny Simpson who have been outstanding in the tight and loose this season.
Fixtures. Sat 10.1.15. Kick off 2.30pm
Ballynahinch v Cork Constitution
Clontarf v Lansdowne
Dolphin v UCD
St Mary’s College v Old Belvedere
Young Munster v Terenure College
Division 1B
Ballymena v Dublin Uni
Second place Ballymena are one point behind league leaders Galwegians and three points ahead of fourth placed Dublin Uni who they meet at College Park on Sat in Dublin. Undoubtedly the biggest test for Coach Andy Graham and his playing squad this season. It may have taken the students several weeks to adjust to the AIL, at the beginning of the season, but they have now only lost once in their last eight games. A win on Sat is crucial for the Braid men if they are to sustain their promotion ambitions with the two horse race between Galwegians and Ballymena turning into a four horse race with Garryowen and Dublin Uni joining the race for promotion. Ulster players Mike McComish, Ricky Andrews, Michael Lagan, John Andrews, and Dave Shanahan have all been released this weekend. Winger Jordan Foster was the star performer for Ballymena against Quins, creating one try and scoring the decisive points to secure a 17 – 13 win. Once again their back row pairing of Stephen Mulholland and Matthew Rea will have a key role to play in the outcome of this match.
Belfast Harlequins v Malone
There is a Belfast derby between tenth placed Belfast Harlequins and sixth placed Malone at Deramore Park with five points separating the two sides. Quins have benefited from the release of Ulster players Ricky Lutton, Frankie Taggart, Michael Heaney and Rory Scholes in their last two AIL games, picking up six league points. Malone are hoping Conor Joyce will be available to play after picking up an injury against Galway Corinthians. He will be joined by Ulster Academy prospect Paul Jackson who had an outstanding game against the Galway side scoring two tries in a man of the match performance. The clubs other allocated Ulster players Bronson Ross, Alan O’Connor and Peter Nelson have become regular squad members on the Ulster team in recent months. Both clubs have experienced a crippling injury list this season with Malone losing forwards Lee McClure, Andrew Black, Michael Ferguson, James McAllister, Richard Millar and Neil Alcorn to long term injuries. Coach Jacque Benade has added the three Burns brothers – John, Neil and Thomas along with Ross Todd, Rory Campbell, Kieran Joyce and Josh Bingham to his playing squad along with the returning Cory Tipping and Josh Pentland. Injury continues to rule out winger Michael Cartmill. The Quins mid field has been boosted by the return of their exciting pairing Mark Wylie and Mark Glover. Squad players Angelo Maricia, Josh Fullerton and Daryl Marshall returned from injury to play for the seconds last week. Euan Strang and Roger Kirkwood are still on injured list with prop Tom Fraser close to returning to play. Prop Paul Greenaway joined the injury list after departing early against Ballymena last Sat.
Fixtures. Sat 10.1.15. Kick off 2.30pm
Belfast Harlequins v Malone
Buccaneers v Shannon
Corinthians v Garryowen
Dublin Uni v Ballymena
UL Bohemians v Galwegians
Ulster Championship League
Ards v Rainey OB Kick off 2.30pm
Qualifying League One
With eight matches remaining all ten teams have everything to play for, with Instonians in pole position to win the league. The race to finish in the top four and qualify for the All Ireland Junior Cup will be eagerly contested by Clogher Valley, Bangor, Balyclare, Portadown, Dromore and CIYMS. At the bottom end of the table there is a battle between Cooke, Donaghadee and Ballymoney to avoid finishing in the bottom two positions. With Ards struggling to retain their AIL status there is a real prospect of two teams being relegated from Q 1 if Instonians were not promoted to the AIL.
Ballymoney v Portadown
Alot at stake for both teams. Ballymoney coach Jason Taggart knows his side need points to avoid relegation from Q 1. They will have been disappointed to lose their Towns Cup match at neighbours Coleraine 11 – 3 last Sat. Portadown coach Richard Hedley is looking to build on his teams 41 – 17 win over Limavady as they target an extended Towns Cup run. Back row forward Dairmuid O’Kane is ruled out through injury and is replaced by the experienced Gary Hall. Captain Jonny Holden returns to take his place in the centre with Jonny McClure making his debut on the wing. When the teams met in the corresponding fixture at Chambers Park in Sept, Portadown ran out 43 – 10 winners.
CIYMS v Cooke
These are nervous times at Belmont. Despite an impressive run in the All Ireland Junior Cup the East Belfast side have struggled in the league.They are in seventh place one point ahead of Cooke in eighth place. Hooker Stuart Ferguson is on the injury list with a doubt over winger Harry Howard. Coach Gareth Fry has some difficult selections to make ahead of a must win game, if they are to maintain their pursuit of a top four finish. Club stalwart Maurice Dowle is concerned the two semi final games with Dundalk in the All Ireland Junior Cup has drained the players as they suffered a surprise defeat at home to Donaghadee after Xmas. The squad has the talent and experience to turn their season around. It is a young squad they have assembled at Circular Road with the players experiencing the highs and lows of competitive club rugby. Will coach Gareth Fry continue at out half after turning out against the Dee. Both Sam Baker and Matty Armstrong are available again for selection after picking up injuries against Dundalk. The experienced Ross Hackney along with Captain Gavin Woods have key roles to play in negotiating the side through these difficult weeks. Cooke player coach Colin Atkinson was delighted with the performance of his team in defeating Dromore 23 – 10 after Xmas. Winger Andy Pollack returned from injury to score two tries with scrum half Gareth Robinson adding a third and out half Davy Elliott kicking eight points. The experienced second row Graham Jewhurst has returned to strengthen the pack with the coach confident his mobile pack can win enough first phase ball for his talented back line to score tries this weekend. Full back Philip Cartmill returns to take a place on the the bench for his first outing after suffering a serious pre season injury. CIYMS were comfortable winners when the two sides met at Shawsbridge in Sept winning 24 – 6.
Donaghadee v Clogher Valley
Player coach Paul McKenzie has eight games left to keep the Dee in Q 1. His task does not get any easier with the current league champions Clogher Valley visiting Donaldson Park on Sat. He has had to make four changes from the side that defeated CIYMS after Xmas. Forwards Jack Cooke and Matthew Stockton are replaced by Richard Martindale and the returning Chris Hamilton along with Andrew Findlater and Ryan Irvine replacing backs Chris Woods and Adam Alexander. Clogher Valley coaches Glen Kyle and Davy Black have BJ Wilson, Eugene McKenna and prop Richard Wilson unavailable with Jack Stott starting at centre and Allister Trenier on the bench. Mark Ellis continues at scrum half in the absence of Aaron Best with Nathan Orr coming into the back row. It is a much changed Clogher team that will rely on Captain David Sharkey to steer them through this tricky fixture. Clogher won the home fixture in Sept by 43 – 10.
Dromore v Ballyclare
When these two sides met at the Cloughan in Sept, Ballyclare only just defeated Dromore 25 – 23. Expect another close encounter at Barben Hill this weekend. Dromore assistant coach Jeremy Ogle was disappointed with the teams defeat at Cooke after Xmas. The postponement of their league game with CIYMS on the 20th Dec disrupted the teams preparations in Dec. They have bounced back with a convincing 40 – 20 win at Rainey in the Towns Cup last Sat. They will miss their influential scrum half Lee Steenson on Sat through injury. There is a belief in the squad they can secure a top four placing this season and qualification for the All Ireland Junior Cup along with a Cup run in the Towns Cup. Ballyclare manager Peter Kirk is hoping his team can bounce back from a run of one win in their last five games including a surprising 14 – 11 defeat at neighbours Carrickfergus in the Towns Cup. Player injuries/ Non availability has hurt the team both at training and in games with no consistency from week to week. He acknowledges that Dromore will be a stiff challenge for his players this weekend. They welcome back experienced back rower Nigel Moore after a long term injury along with player coach Kris James and Gareth Byers. Tom Wilson will play at 13 with Michael Kirk restored on the wing. He is confident Ballyclare will be well prepared and eager to get back on track at Dromore.
A top four placing is a realistic goal for the County Antrim team after securing promotion this season.
Instonians v Bangor
Coach William Leacock and his Instonians squad face another testing fixture this week when they welcome the in form Bangor team to Shaws bridge. Both sides have strong playing squads that have enabled Instonians to win the Junioor Cup and Bangor to reach the final of the All Ireland Junior Cup. Bangor have included the returning Chris Morgan with Jason Morgan, Ryan Latimer and Mike Apsley being rested. Mark Thompson is out with a facial injury. Young centre Desi Fusco is staking a claim for regular starting place on the 1st xv after several impressive performances such is the strength in depth available to coaches Rupert Preston and Jason Morgan. Instonians have injury doubts over back row forwards Paddy Marks and Rory McCurry and will look to put their strongest xv out after resting several players against Quins seconds in the McCrea Cup last weekend. Another fixture that is sure to attract a large crowd to South Belfast venue. Bangor will want to reverse the 27 – 3 defeat Instonians inflicted on the seasiders at Upritchard Park in Sept.
Fixtures. Sat 10.1.15. Kick off 2.30pm
Ballymoney v Portadown
CIYMS v Cooke
Donaghadee v Clogher Valley
Dromore v Ballyclare
Instonians v Bangor
Qualifying Two
Undefeated Omagh remain the favourites to win this league with eleven games remaining. Despite their shock Towns Cup defeat at Armagh last Sat, coach Phil Marshall knows his team are being pursued by a chasing pack including Academy, Carrickfergus, Coleraine, Randalstown and Enniskillen who only need his team to be defeated once to open up this league race. Can his players withstand the pressure to achieve their goal of promotion to Q 1.
Academy v Enniskillen
The Roughfort side are joint top of Q 2 with Omagh having played three more games than the County Tyrone side. They meet an inform Enniskillen side who have played four games less than Academy. How crucial is the outcome of this match for both sides if they are to remain within the promotion chase. Academy coach Gareth Lynn restores the fit again Will Martin to the centre with Dave Kenny moving to full back to replace the injured Simon Patterson. His pack remain unchanged from the win over Grosvenor last weekend. The coach is taking each match as it comes and not thinking too far ahead. He is delighted with the teams results and the league position they are in. He feels the players have more in the tank in terms of performance over a full eighty minutes, but pleased with the squads progress this season. Enniskillen player/coach Ashley Finlay is delighted with the progress their playing squad has made under the guidance of Head coach Norman Richmond. After an impressive 32 – 8 win over Randalstown in the Towns Cup the coaches will rotate their playing squad for the visit to Academy by adding Ryan Cathcart, Michael Cadden, Kyle Johnson, Danny Maguire and Richard Grey to their 17 man match day squad. His Skins side are looking forward to this game. It will be interesting to see the battle between the two packs with Ulster Junior props James Blair and Chris Nash starting for Academy. Another mouth watering contest between two evenly matched sides with the return fixture due to take place in Enniskillen on the 31st Jan.
Carrickfergus v Randalstown
Head coach Warren McLean has assembled a talented and hard working squad that has completed the league double over Coleraine and recorded a 14 – 11 win over Q 1 side Ballyclare at the Toms Simms Memorial Park last Sat in the Towns Cup. The goal for the East Antrim side is promotion to Q 1 in the clubs 150th anniversary year. They are one point behind leaders Academy and Omagh having played one game more than Omagh. Randalstown struggled at Enniskillen last weekend as they were over whelmed by the power of the Skins pack. They can expect more of the same when they meet the Carrickfergus forwards on Sat. Carrick won the corresponding fixture 23 – 3 when the two sides met at Nelisbrook in October.
Coleraine v Lisburn
Head coach John Boyd is convinced his side can challenge Omagh for promotion this season. His team put in an impressive performance to defeat Q 1 side Ballymoney in the Towns Cup last Sat 11 – 3. Struggling Lisburn lost 27 -8 at Holywood last weekend in the Towns Cup. For their coach Mark Crothers it has been a difficult season as his team contend with an ever lengthening injury list. Coleraine Captain Stephen Dickey will be looking the maximum five points from this game as they pursue Omagh. Coleraine were convincing winers at Lisburn in October winning 38 – 17.
UUC v Omagh
Two games against Instonians and Enniskillen before Xmas, has stripped coach Phil Marshall and his team of six key forwards – Mervyn Edgar, Dean Porter, Richard harpur, Stuart Allen, Davy Thompson and Jamie Sproule. He is hoping to have most of them available again during January with the exception of Davy Thompson. The coach has been pleased with the performance of several seconds players who have stepped up including former Omagh Academy schoolboys, James Catterson and Stuart Allen. He knows he has 11 league games left with the contest for the league far from over. He will need a good second half of the season. Everyone wants to be the first team to beat them in the league. It has been a difficult season for the students as they look to avoid relegation from Q 1 to Q 3 in consecutive seasons.
Fixtures. Sat 10.1.15. Kick off 2.30pm
Academy v Enniskillen
Carrickfergus v Randalstown
Coleraine v Lisburn
UUC v Omagh
Qualifying Three
Fixtures. Sat. 10.1.15. Kick off 2.30pm
Donegal Town v Newry
Limavady v Ophir
Lurgan v Strabane
Qualifying Four
Fixtures. Sat 10.1.15. Kick off 2.30pm
BHSFP v Civil Service
Londonderry YMCA v Letterkenny
Virginia v Cavan
Cheers
George
