Ulster Carpets U18 Youth Final
Armagh 19 Letterkenny 12
Cormac Fox proved to be the hero for Armagh in the Ulster Carpets U18 Youth Cup Final today at Kingspan Stadium, as he kicked 14 points in a superb individual performance.
In a first-half that threw up limited chances, it was Fox who carved the only score of the half on 19 minutes as he placed a delightful chip and chase in behind the Letterkenny defence, which allowed his half-back partner William Holden to collect and touch down in the left corner.
Fox was at the heart of everything good for Armagh, linking up play and probing with kicks in behind. On the half-time whistle he had a chance to extend the Armagh lead but his penalty attempt from the right sideline just fell short under the crossbar.
Half-time score: Armagh 7 Letterkenny 0.
It was Letterkenny who applied the early pressure in the second half, but they were unable to reap the rewards of this on the scoreboard.
On 44 minutes Fox was able to settle the Armagh side back into the game with a penalty and three minutes later he brilliantly converted another from the left hand sideline.
Indiscipline cost Letterkenny again on 55 minutes as they conceded yet another penalty within sight of the posts and Fox duly accepted, moving Armagh 16-0 in front.
Despite the scoreline, Letterkenny continued to battle gamely and eventually made the breakthrough on 60 minutes as they created space on the left wing for substitute Kevin Grant to get in behind and touch down, however they were unable to add the extra points.
With a vociferous support behind them, Letterkenny started to make more regular headway into the opposition half and looked a lot more dangerous.
On 70 minutes, Letterkenny winger Oisin Toal scored the try of the day, sidestepping no less than 5 Armagh defenders to get in under the posts. Peter Scott made no mistake with the conversion to leave the score 16-12.
In a nervy final ten minutes both sides battled back and forth in search of winning scores but defences remained resolute.
With time running out, Armagh forced Letterkenny back inside their own '22, and when Fox dropped back into the pocket, it was clear what was coming. Following some grinding work by his forwards, the ball was fed out and Fox nailed the drop-goal to put his side 7 points in front.
Letterkenny failed to retrieve possession from the restart and the referee sounded the full-time whistle, much to the loud relief of the Armagh supporters.
Congratulations to both sides on serving up an outstanding showpiece finale in today's Youth Cup Finals.
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Ulster Carpets U16 Youth Final
Dromore 10 Rainey OB 11
It took a Nathan Scullion penalty 7 minutes from time for Rainey OB to secure the Ulster Carpets U16 Final, in what was the first of a triple-header of Youth Finals played at Kingspan Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Attacking the memorial end in the first half, Rainey got off to a flying start as out-half Giuseppe Lupari nipped into the right corner to touch down.
It took Dromore a further 10 minutes to respond as Ben Heath kicked over a penalty from the '22. On the 30 minute mark, Rainey landed a penalty of their own from the boot of Ryan Kearns to leave the score Dromore 3 Rainey 8 at half-time.
In the second half it was Dromore who would draw first blood on 37 minutes with out-half Adam Buller darting through the heart of the Rainey defence to score a wonderful try just to the left of the posts. Heath added the extra 2 points to put Dromore ahead for the first time, 10-8.
The try seamed to inspire Dromore and they played with a renewed vigour, driving forward with intent but unable to add to their lead as the Rainey defence held firm.
Rainey managed to weather the storm then pinned their opponents back with a couple of excellent breaks. As Dromore legs started to tire, they gave away the crucial penalty which Scullion converted from 22m to edge Rainey back in front once more.
Despite a spirited effort from Dromore in the closing minutes, the Rainey defence just about held on to record a victory by the minimum of margins, 11-10.
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Ulster Carpets U14 Youth Final
Virginia 17 Carrick 10
In a half of very entertaining end-to-end action, it was Carrick who got off the mark first on 9 minutes as their captain Matthew Robinson evaded a number of would-be-tacklers to score a fine individual try just to the left of the posts.
For the next 10 minutes Carrick continued to pile on the pressure, but some excellent last-ditch tackling from Virginia prevented any further damage on the scoreboard.
On 22 minutes the Carrick pressure was rewarded as Conor Huey chipped into the right hand corner and just missed the collection himself, but teammate Thomas Morrison was on hand to collect and drive over.
Virginia responded in admirable fashion with their big men making huge inroads up the pitch, where they were held up on the line no less than 3 times.
On 28 minutes Virginia got their just rewards as Conor Nulty touched down in the left corner, to give them plenty of hope going into the second half.
Half-time score Virginia 5 Carrick 10
With the rain now steadily coming down, the greasy conditions forced a lot of turnovers in the tackle on both sides during the opening stages of the second half.
On 43 minutes some opportunistic play from Michael McKeon-Boyle saw him pick and drive from close range before Aaron Mannion added the conversion to put Virginia ahead for the first time, 12-10.
Virginia were now a re-energised team and continued to mount considerable pressure on the Carrick defence. While Carrick did their upmost to hold their line, the pressure from Virginia finally told as Jamie Osbourne bustled over from close range on 53 minutes for what would be the final score of the game.