Ulster U18 Girls played their first ever Inter-Provincial game on Saturday evening, when they took on Leinster at Armagh RFC.
In the opening half Ulster set the tone by putting in some impressive hits and didn't allow the Leinster girls out of their own half. From a strong set piece, Vicky Irwin created a gap for Leah McGoldrick to burst through, with some excellent support play from Vicky Irwin and the pack that allowed Neve Jones to score in the far corner.
Leinster started to up their game and began to play some good patterns, but Leah McGoldrick and Brittany Hogan made some excellent hits in midfield that stopped Leinster's attack moving forward. Claire Boles and Storm Cobain caused Leinster problems at the break-down by turning over ball and allowing Vicky Irwin and her backs to clear their lines, leaving the score 5-0 at half-time.
Leinster started the second half with some good possession, with Eimear Corri looking a real threat but Kelly McCormill did well to contain her for the most part. Leinster continued to look dangerous on the counter attack and eventually Corri was able to break down the right wing to score in the corner and level up the game at 5 each.
With 15 minutes to go the crowd in attendance really got behind the Ulster girls. Through good set piece from the forwards and strong running from the backs the pressure was building on Leinster. Ulster kept to their patterns and following some patient build up Kelly McCormill was able to dive over the line to score her side's second try of the evening.
The Ulster girls dug in and defended well in the remaining minutes with Leinster throwing everything at them. All the girls from 1-23 played exceptionally well, and the coaches couldn't have asked for a better performance for their opening game.
Next up for the girls is a trip to Bucaneers RFC to take on Connacht on Sunday 25th September, kick-off 2.30pm.
Match day squad;
1. Emma Kearney
2. Sara Whitely
3. Neve Jones
4. Natalie Kinghan
5. Caoilinn McCormack
6. Bethany McDowell
7. Claire Boles
8. Storm Cobain
9. Carla Rafferty
10. Vikki Irwin
11. Lucinda Kinghan
12. Brittany Hogan
13. Leah McGoldrick
14. Kelly McCormill
15. Ciara Browne
16. Megan Brodie
17. Grace Shrestha
18. Tammy Millar
19. Keelin Brady
20. Katie Hetherington
21. Lisa Mullen
22. Ellie Ingram
23. Dolores Hughes
In the opening half Ulster set the tone by putting in some impressive hits and didn't allow the Leinster girls out of their own half. From a strong set piece, Vicky Irwin created a gap for Leah McGoldrick to burst through, with some excellent support play from Vicky Irwin and the pack that allowed Neve Jones to score in the far corner.
Leinster started to up their game and began to play some good patterns, but Leah McGoldrick and Brittany Hogan made some excellent hits in midfield that stopped Leinster's attack moving forward. Claire Boles and Storm Cobain caused Leinster problems at the break-down by turning over ball and allowing Vicky Irwin and her backs to clear their lines, leaving the score 5-0 at half-time.
Leinster started the second half with some good possession, with Eimear Corri looking a real threat but Kelly McCormill did well to contain her for the most part. Leinster continued to look dangerous on the counter attack and eventually Corri was able to break down the right wing to score in the corner and level up the game at 5 each.
With 15 minutes to go the crowd in attendance really got behind the Ulster girls. Through good set piece from the forwards and strong running from the backs the pressure was building on Leinster. Ulster kept to their patterns and following some patient build up Kelly McCormill was able to dive over the line to score her side's second try of the evening.
The Ulster girls dug in and defended well in the remaining minutes with Leinster throwing everything at them. All the girls from 1-23 played exceptionally well, and the coaches couldn't have asked for a better performance for their opening game.
Next up for the girls is a trip to Bucaneers RFC to take on Connacht on Sunday 25th September, kick-off 2.30pm.
Match day squad;
1. Emma Kearney
2. Sara Whitely
3. Neve Jones
4. Natalie Kinghan
5. Caoilinn McCormack
6. Bethany McDowell
7. Claire Boles
8. Storm Cobain
9. Carla Rafferty
10. Vikki Irwin
11. Lucinda Kinghan
12. Brittany Hogan
13. Leah McGoldrick
14. Kelly McCormill
15. Ciara Browne
16. Megan Brodie
17. Grace Shrestha
18. Tammy Millar
19. Keelin Brady
20. Katie Hetherington
21. Lisa Mullen
22. Ellie Ingram
23. Dolores Hughes