On Monday and Tuesday four combat-hardened sides will contest the semi-finals of the 2016 Danske Bank Ulster Schools' Cup at Kingspan Stadium.
The prize, of course, is a place in the traditional St. Patrick’s Day Final at ‘headquarters’ of rugby’s second oldest competition.
For young players the Schools’ Cup has always had a very special place in the sporting and social calendar, and RBAI, Ballymena Academy, Campbell College and Dalriada will each want to be part of an uniquely colourful occasion.
On Monday the holders, Royal Belfast Academical Institution, will take on an impressive side from Ballymena Academy in the first of two ‘town versus country’ semi-finals. The following afternoon, again at 2.30pm, Campbell College will be confronted by a Dalriada School side which carries the hopes of many beyond its home in Ballymoney.
All the schools have negotiated the various rounds of the tournament which through January and February drew hugely enthusiastic and admirably partisan crowds on Saturday mornings right across the Province. There have been the some upsets, many surprises, and some of the so-called ‘minnows’ have taken the scalps of traditionally stronger schools.
Now, after thoroughly entertaining and eventful earlier rounds, the destiny of the famous Schools’ Cup Shield will become just a little bit clearer after what promises to be two fascinating semi-finals, being staged at one of the most admired ruby stadia in Europe - the state-of-the-art Kingspan Stadium.
It’s a feast of schools rugby to start the week, and all four sides will have supporters making noisy, good-humoured Monday and Tuesday afternoons urging their favourites on to another trip to Belfast on Thursday 17th March.
Come along and join in the fun, and see some of the players who’ll become more familiar to us all for years to come!
RBAI v BALLYMENA ACADEMY
Kingspan Stadium, Monday 29th February, 2.30pm
Tickets are still available to pre-purchase through www.ulsterrugby.com/buytickets or you can pay at the gate on Tuesday.
Holders Belfast ‘Inst’ and its semi-final opposition from Ballymena Academy have journeyed to the last four and arrived at the Kingspan relatively unscathed with neither team conceding a try in the earlier rounds.
RBAI has been scoring tries for fun, crossing the Coleraine Grammar School line four times in the 3rd Round encounter, and touching down for six tries against Sullivan Upper in the quarter-final game. The majority of those scores have come from the talented ‘Inst’ backline, but forwards like Charlie Cloke have featured on the scoresheet.
The RBAI coaching team of Director of Rugby, Dan Soper, and Richard Hedley know their young charges are keen to emulate the ‘Class of 2015’ and retain the Danske Bank Ulster Schools Cup in just over a fortnight. But the coaches will insist that no-one looks further than the immediate hurdle offered by Ballymena Academy.
The holders’ pack could be key to the outcome on Monday, with players such as Callum Reid, a potential Ireland U18 player, John Dickson, Neil Saulters, Jake Chambers and Cloke expected to gain at least parity with the strong Ballymena unit at set-piece time. That might allow the ‘Inst’ half-backs, Rhys O’Donnell and Michael Lowry, to impose their undoubted game management skills on proceedings.
Amongst the backs James Hume is another potential target for the Ireland U18 management, while Ben McGavock, Joe Finnegan and Mark Keane have thrived off the good work up front and from the ‘halves’ in the course of the current Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup campaign.
However it appears the player to have benefitted most from the good work from his team-mates has been the RBAI skipper Conor Field. Having been carefully nursed back from injury Field’s pace, power and panache as a winger were all clear to be seen in his last two Cup outings. His gather, chip, chase and touchdown against Sullivan Upper in the quarter-final was a superb piece of skill which had the supporters of both schools applauding.
John Andrews and Gavin Murray have coached their Ballymena Academy players in a most effective and impressive manner, particularly in the team’s last two Schools’ Cup games. The 12-3 victory against a very good Wallace High School team in the third Round instilled a great deal of confidence in the squad, and that was apparent too in the fourth Round game against a committed Belfast Royal Academy.
The Ballymena Academy squad has a very strong blend of youth and experience, and captain Marcus Rea, who has also captained the Ulster U19 team, is one of a number of players who has played for three years in the Ulster Schools’ Cup. Hooker Alexander Clarke was a member of last season’s Ireland U18 FIRA squad and could be an important influence in the Ballymena pack, and his lineout throwing, striking, carrying, tackling and decision-making against BRA in the quarter-final game won’t have gone unnoticed.
Jonny McKeown, also a member of the 2015 FIRA squad, is joined by his captain Marcus Rea and the ever-present Azur Allison in a dynamic Ballymena Academy back row, while Josh Bill is also an important part of a well-drilled pack. McKeown, Rea and Bill are playing Schools’ Cup rugby for a third year, and that experience could pose ‘Inst’ some problems.
With loosehead prop David Forsythe having played no fewer than 37 consecutive games over two years it’s clear he’ll hardly have any fears of what confronts him.
The Ballymena backline impresses most with ball in hand and given the right conditions and quality of possession, and scrum-half Michael Stronge is an increasingly influential figure, and having already featured with the Ulster U19 team despite his tender years he, and his outhalf Bruce Houston, are maturing fast, and Houston has scored over 120 points this season.
He was very accurate with his boot against Wallace High School and BRA in the previous two rounds, and he’s a fine distributor and playmaker.
There is pace and power in the wider Academy channels with players such as Angus Kernohan, another Ulster age Grade player, Conor Cosgrove, Ryan McKee and Alan Small all willing to take on opposition defences, with Kernohan putting in a superb try-scoring performance against BRA.
Mark Thompson, another attendee at the Ireland U18 Camp, is an exciting prospect at full-back on the Ballymena team, and he’s part of a backline which is full of tries and will fully examine the Belfast ‘Inst’ defensive systems.
When the referee blows his whistle to start the game at 2-30 be ready for a potentially attractive contest between sides of many talents but contrasting styles.
The prize, of course, is a place in the traditional St. Patrick’s Day Final at ‘headquarters’ of rugby’s second oldest competition.
For young players the Schools’ Cup has always had a very special place in the sporting and social calendar, and RBAI, Ballymena Academy, Campbell College and Dalriada will each want to be part of an uniquely colourful occasion.
On Monday the holders, Royal Belfast Academical Institution, will take on an impressive side from Ballymena Academy in the first of two ‘town versus country’ semi-finals. The following afternoon, again at 2.30pm, Campbell College will be confronted by a Dalriada School side which carries the hopes of many beyond its home in Ballymoney.
All the schools have negotiated the various rounds of the tournament which through January and February drew hugely enthusiastic and admirably partisan crowds on Saturday mornings right across the Province. There have been the some upsets, many surprises, and some of the so-called ‘minnows’ have taken the scalps of traditionally stronger schools.
Now, after thoroughly entertaining and eventful earlier rounds, the destiny of the famous Schools’ Cup Shield will become just a little bit clearer after what promises to be two fascinating semi-finals, being staged at one of the most admired ruby stadia in Europe - the state-of-the-art Kingspan Stadium.
It’s a feast of schools rugby to start the week, and all four sides will have supporters making noisy, good-humoured Monday and Tuesday afternoons urging their favourites on to another trip to Belfast on Thursday 17th March.
Come along and join in the fun, and see some of the players who’ll become more familiar to us all for years to come!
RBAI v BALLYMENA ACADEMY
Kingspan Stadium, Monday 29th February, 2.30pm
Tickets are still available to pre-purchase through www.ulsterrugby.com/buytickets or you can pay at the gate on Tuesday.
Holders Belfast ‘Inst’ and its semi-final opposition from Ballymena Academy have journeyed to the last four and arrived at the Kingspan relatively unscathed with neither team conceding a try in the earlier rounds.
RBAI has been scoring tries for fun, crossing the Coleraine Grammar School line four times in the 3rd Round encounter, and touching down for six tries against Sullivan Upper in the quarter-final game. The majority of those scores have come from the talented ‘Inst’ backline, but forwards like Charlie Cloke have featured on the scoresheet.
The RBAI coaching team of Director of Rugby, Dan Soper, and Richard Hedley know their young charges are keen to emulate the ‘Class of 2015’ and retain the Danske Bank Ulster Schools Cup in just over a fortnight. But the coaches will insist that no-one looks further than the immediate hurdle offered by Ballymena Academy.
The holders’ pack could be key to the outcome on Monday, with players such as Callum Reid, a potential Ireland U18 player, John Dickson, Neil Saulters, Jake Chambers and Cloke expected to gain at least parity with the strong Ballymena unit at set-piece time. That might allow the ‘Inst’ half-backs, Rhys O’Donnell and Michael Lowry, to impose their undoubted game management skills on proceedings.
Amongst the backs James Hume is another potential target for the Ireland U18 management, while Ben McGavock, Joe Finnegan and Mark Keane have thrived off the good work up front and from the ‘halves’ in the course of the current Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup campaign.
However it appears the player to have benefitted most from the good work from his team-mates has been the RBAI skipper Conor Field. Having been carefully nursed back from injury Field’s pace, power and panache as a winger were all clear to be seen in his last two Cup outings. His gather, chip, chase and touchdown against Sullivan Upper in the quarter-final was a superb piece of skill which had the supporters of both schools applauding.
John Andrews and Gavin Murray have coached their Ballymena Academy players in a most effective and impressive manner, particularly in the team’s last two Schools’ Cup games. The 12-3 victory against a very good Wallace High School team in the third Round instilled a great deal of confidence in the squad, and that was apparent too in the fourth Round game against a committed Belfast Royal Academy.
The Ballymena Academy squad has a very strong blend of youth and experience, and captain Marcus Rea, who has also captained the Ulster U19 team, is one of a number of players who has played for three years in the Ulster Schools’ Cup. Hooker Alexander Clarke was a member of last season’s Ireland U18 FIRA squad and could be an important influence in the Ballymena pack, and his lineout throwing, striking, carrying, tackling and decision-making against BRA in the quarter-final game won’t have gone unnoticed.
Jonny McKeown, also a member of the 2015 FIRA squad, is joined by his captain Marcus Rea and the ever-present Azur Allison in a dynamic Ballymena Academy back row, while Josh Bill is also an important part of a well-drilled pack. McKeown, Rea and Bill are playing Schools’ Cup rugby for a third year, and that experience could pose ‘Inst’ some problems.
With loosehead prop David Forsythe having played no fewer than 37 consecutive games over two years it’s clear he’ll hardly have any fears of what confronts him.
The Ballymena backline impresses most with ball in hand and given the right conditions and quality of possession, and scrum-half Michael Stronge is an increasingly influential figure, and having already featured with the Ulster U19 team despite his tender years he, and his outhalf Bruce Houston, are maturing fast, and Houston has scored over 120 points this season.
He was very accurate with his boot against Wallace High School and BRA in the previous two rounds, and he’s a fine distributor and playmaker.
There is pace and power in the wider Academy channels with players such as Angus Kernohan, another Ulster age Grade player, Conor Cosgrove, Ryan McKee and Alan Small all willing to take on opposition defences, with Kernohan putting in a superb try-scoring performance against BRA.
Mark Thompson, another attendee at the Ireland U18 Camp, is an exciting prospect at full-back on the Ballymena team, and he’s part of a backline which is full of tries and will fully examine the Belfast ‘Inst’ defensive systems.
When the referee blows his whistle to start the game at 2-30 be ready for a potentially attractive contest between sides of many talents but contrasting styles.