Carrickfergus defend Randalstown trophy
Wednesday, 3 September 2008
ON SATURDAY Carrickfergus finished off their pre season preparations when they travelled to Randalstown for their annual fifteen a side tournament.
Carrickfergus were keen to defend the trophy and took a mixture of experience and youth with seven players from this year's Under 20s squad included.
In the group matches Ballymoney, Ballyclare and Holywood were all defeated, with only Ballyclare putting Carrickfergus under any form of pressure but this was mostly through self enforced mistakes and poor decision making by the Woodlawn boys.
The only downside at this stage of the tournament was that Ross Marsden had been lost to Antrim Area hospital for a number stitches on a head wound, which halted his participation but after returning patched up the injury is not expected to keep him off the pitch for long.
A resurgent Grosvenor, who are rejoining Qualifying League 3 this season after a number of seasons in the junior leagues were the opposition in the semi-finals. The match was a tighter affair than the earlier clashes, with Grosvenor keen to run the ball, especially in the counter attack, however Carrickfergus proceeded through a single try that was converted.
This led to them facing a strong looking Ballymena in the final, who were the winners of the other group. From the outset Carrickfergus showed a controlled aggression and determination which quite simply blew Ballymena away, with them winning 42 points to nil.
The most impressive part of this match and all the other displays, was that during 140 minutes of rugby played on the day, Carrickfergus had not conceded a solitary point and scored over 100 points. In addition the set piece play from scrums and lineouts improved throughout the day, with a number of tries being scored directly from them. It is difficult to single out individuals in what was a fine squad display, with all members making significant efforts but it was very pleasing to see all of the Under 20 players blending in so well with the established players who appear to have taken on the younger challenge and have lifted their commitment and fitness levels.
With the 1st XV facing their first competitive challenge in the form of Portadown 2s in the Junior Cup this Saturday, coaches Gary Leslie and Aaron Mckinney, will be wanting to see the players step up another level at Woodlawn. Indeed of the biggest headaches facing them this week will be selecting a starting 15 from their current squad, after so many good displays in the pre season.
This will hopefully help Jamsey Hagan on the 2nd XV as they commence their league campaign away to Rainey 3s, with them hoping to use a mixture of youth and experience in the form of Terry McCracken and Michael Nugent to give them a winning start. The 3rd and 4th will also be looking to get points on the bag with home fixtures, under the leadership of Craig McArthur and Danny Thomas respectively.
So if you are interested in rugby, why not come along and support your local side and make your way to Woodlawn this weekend as we are always keen to see new faces in the crowd. All kick offs are at 2.30 pm.
For our youngest members Mini rugby starts on Saturday morning at 9.30 am to 11am under the leadership of Andy Hunter. We look forward to welcoming old and new members from the age of P3 to Year 8 along to be coached by nearly 20 fully qualified coaches and lets see if we can discover the next David Humphreys or Rory Best.
Fixtures for Saturday the 6th of September:
1st XV Portadown 2s Home Junior Cup
2nd XV Rainey 3s Away League
3rd XV Ballymena 2s Home League
4th XV Malone 4s Home League
