Last weekend saw the commencement of the age-grade club season with a full programme of fixtures down for decision across the Under 18, Under 16, and Under 14 age groups.
In total, 46 matches were played with everyone aiming to be in the hunt for a play-off come the end of the regular league season in December.
Banbridge were the big winners in Under 18 Division 1 with a 46-12 win over neighbours City of Armagh.
The Armagh boys came into the campaign as current Under 18 League Champions, but they came up against a Banbridge team backboned by last season’s Under 16 winning team.
Last season’s beaten finalists, Dungannon squeezed home against Coleraine 29-28, while Ballynahinch saw off Instonians 31-7.
In Division 1 East, Ballymena and Ballymoney had narrow wins over Carrickfergus and Rainey respectively, while Instonians enjoyed a 24-0 away win over Banbridge.
In the Western Division, Letterkenny made the long trek to Virginia and came away with a 36-17 win while City of Armagh edged Monaghan 22-17 at IJM Park.
Elsewhere, one of the teams expected to challenge for league honours, Strabane proved too strong for Dungannon at Bradley Way.
In Under 14 Division 1 East, Ballymena got the better of Carrickfergus, while Ballymoney enjoyed a 53-31 win over Rainey in a great game of running rugby.
City of Armagh Under 14’s enjoyed a 40-0 win over Monaghan in Under 14 Division 1 West, and Virginia got their season off on a winning note with a 26-10 win over Letterkenny.
With player gametime being a priority, several clubs made good use of the “game on” and “game of thirds” approaches, ensuring more players got rugby on Saturday than would have been possible if fixtures had been cancelled.
By fulfilling the fixtures, teams earned league points, players got valuable minutes and referees also had games to officiate.