Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Round Up Saturday 17th September 2016

Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Round Up Saturday 17^th September 2016

There were a few midweek games played in the lead up to the last of the age grade Inter Provincial games, as well as a full list of friendly fixtures, on Saturday 17^th September.

Grosvenor Grammar School maintained their positive start to the new season with a 31-5 victory against Dalriada School. Grosvenor Grammar School kicked off and quickly put pressure on the Dalriada team by forcing an early turnover following great work by open side flanker, Ben Davies. From the resulting line out, inside centre, Jos McConkey, made serious inroads into the Dalriada 22m area. The ball was recycled quickly on a number of occasions before Ben Davidson crashed over the Dalriada line to touch down for the try. Daniel Martin converted the try to give his team a 7-0 lead. From the restart Grosvenor again went on the offensive and scored a lovely try with the ball passing through a number of pairs of hands before the very impressive Jos McConkey finished with a try. The conversion attempt was unsuccessful but the Grosvenor GS team had a 12-0 lead. The Grosvenor captain, Daniel Martin, was having a great game at full back and he scored a try, which he converted, to make it 19-0 at half time for the Grosvenor Grammar School team. Dalriada began well in the second half and had a large amount of territory and possession. However, it was from a loose Grosvenor GS kick that they capitalised when Ulster U19 squad member, Dennis Posternak, scored a superb unconverted try to reduce the deficit to 19-5. Once again Grosvenor took control of the game and ran a great back line move which led to a converted try scored from Jake Laverty to increase the Grosvenor GS lead to 26-5. Grosvenor went on to dominate the remainder of the game and Jos McConkey sealed a fine personal performance when he ran in for an unconverted try to ensure the 31-5 victory for the Grosvenor Grammar School team.

Banbridge Academy hosted the Royal School, Armagh team in a midweek fixture the RS Armagh team won by 34-0. The visitors took an early lead when a break in midfield saw good interplay in the backline before Zac Thompson took the final pass to score in the corner. Glen Faloon added the extras to give his team a 7-0 lead. The next fifteen minutes were dominated by the home side but good defence from Nicholas Jennings and Ryan O’Neill allowed Benjamin Boyd to clear his lines. The next score came from Armagh when they turned Banbridge over in their own half. The ball was spread wide to Peter Wilson who beat three defenders to score under the posts. Glen Faloon was successful with the conversion to put his team 14-0 ahead. On the stroke of half time Glen added a long range penalty to see his team into the interval with a 17-0 lead.

The second half saw three further Armagh scores with Zac Thompson getting his second and Ryan O’Neill and Jack Chapman completing the scoring. Glen Faloon added two conversions to leave the final score reading 36-0 in favour of the Royal School, Armagh team.

The last time the Foyle and Londonderry College team played Strabane Academy in a 1stxv friendly game was back in 1993 when it the school was Strabane Grammar School and the current Strabane Academy coach was thirteen years old!! The teams met in a midweek game in which the Foyle College team recorded a 57-0 win but the Strabane team played the game despite the fact they were missing four very influential first choice players. It was only in the final ten minutes of the game the real damage was inflicted by the Foyle College team. The Foyle team dominated possession and territory in the first quarter of the game but could find no way through a dogged Strabane Academy defence. Eventually the break-through came and four quick tries from Thomas Cole, Jake Quinnell, Matthew Alford and Killene Thornton, all of which were converted by Killene, gave the Foyle College team a 28-0 at the interval.

Again, in the second half the Strabane Academy team displayed plenty of commitment in both attack and defence. However, the final quarter of the game saw the strength of the Foyle College team shine through. Team captain, Thomas Cole, touched down for his second try of the game as did Killene Thornton and Matthew Alford. Jake Quinnell completed his hat trick and Killene Thornton was successful with two more conversion attempts which ensured the 57-0 victory for the Foyle and Londonderry College team.

Post-match the experienced Ian Orr, one of the Foyle College coaches, was fulsome in his praise of the performance of the Strabane Academy team and of the continuing work going on in Strabane Academy to develop the game.

Foyle and Londonderry College then travelled to play Limavady Grammar School on Friday evening in a North West “Derby” game the Limavady Grammar School team won by 30-0. The match, which was played in excellent conditions, saw both teams set out at a good pace. Both teams had the opportunities for points early on but both defences held firm.

As the game settled from the early exchanges Limavady started to take control of the match, Jim McCartney kicked well into the Foyle half and Benn Riley disrupted a number of the Foyle College lines out. A series of Limavady penalties allowed Foyle to get back into the game but five minutes before half time a driving maul from Limavady enabled Robbie Hunter to get over in the corner and touch down for an unconverted try for a 5-0 lead at half time.

After a series of kicking exchanges at the start of the second half the Limavady GS fullback, James Howe, spotted a gap and put Gurpatap Sandhu in for a try. The conversion attempt was unsuccessful but the Limavady GS team now had a 10-0 lead. From the restart Foyle penalties at the breakdown gave Limavady a lineout close to the Foyle College line. From the set piece the home team gained good possession which enabled Gurpatap Sandhu to score his second unconverted try of the game and increase the Limavady GS lead to 15-0. Jim McCartney then converted a penalty kick to increase the lead to 18-0. David Brown then broke clear from a maul to dot down close to the Foyle posts. Jim McCartney added the extras to increase the Limavady GS lead to 25-0.

Foyle and Londonderry College then rallied and created some good pressure with Thomas Cole, Matthew Alford and Killene Thornton all asking questions of the Limavady GS defence. However, the home defence was well-organised and determined to let nothing through. In fact it was Jim McCartney who had the final say in the game when, following a Limavady Grammar School scrum on the half way line, he broke clear to touch down for an unconverted try to ensure the game finished with the Limavady Grammar School team recording their well-deserved 30-0 victory.

On Saturday 17^th September the Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ team played the last of their four game Inter Provincial series when they hosted their Leinster Schools’ counterparts at Pirrie Park. Having lost their three previous outings in the competition by just one score hopes were high the Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ team would achieve a degree of the success their hard work over the summer period deserved. Sadly, it was not to be. The Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ team lost their game against Leinster by 21-10 having fought back, at one stage, from 11-0 down to 11-10. It was in the final quarter of the game that Leinster scored twice to ensure their 21-10 win.

The Leinster scrum half, Elliott Ryan, gave his team a 3-0 lead in the fourteenth minute when he converted a penalty opportunity. Five minutes later that lead was extended to 8-0 when the Leinster team launched an attack from midfield which finished when Sam Berry touched down for an unconverted try in the corner. The Ulster team pressurised the Leinster defence on a number of occasions towards the end of the first half with Stewart Moore and George Pringle to the fore. However, lack of accuracy with the final pass ensured the Leinster line remained intact and the visitors took their 8-0 lead into the break.

Three minutes into the second half the Leinster lead was extended to 11-0 when Elliott Ryan kicked his second penalty of the game. Ulster responded with a Bruce Houston penalty to reduce the deficit to 11-3. Stewart Moore then latched on to a loose Leinster pass inside his 22m area. He won the race to the line and touched down for a try. Bruce Houston added the conversion to bring the Ulster team back into the game with the Leinster lead reduced to one point with the scoreboard reading 10-11. A long delay then ensued with medical staff attending to an injured player. When the game restarted the Leinster team scored an unconverted try through David Hawkshaw to see the visitors into a 16-10 lead. The Leinster Schools’ team sealed their 21-10 victory when David Ryan touched down for an unconverted try with the last play of the game.

Danske Ulster U18 Schools’ Team

15. Jack Lewis (Ballyclare HS)
16. Tiarnan Martin (Ballymena Academy)
17. Stewart Moore (Dalriada School)
18. George Pringle (Friends’ School)
19. Jamie Manderson (Wallace HS)
20. Robin Wilson (Down HS)
21. Lewis Finlay (Down HS)
22. Ben Savage (Ballymena Academy)
23. Tim Savoury (Ballymena Academy)
24. Scott Agnew (Ballymena Academy)
25. JJ McKee (Antrim GS)
26. Oisin Kiernan (Campbell College)
27. Matthew Crowther (Captain, Campbell College)
28. Tom Gilpin (BRA)
29. Jamie Macartney (Campbell College)

Replacements:

16. Bryn Davies (Rainey ES)
17. John McKee (Campbell College)
18. Ben Crangle (Methodist College)
19. Max Baillie (Coleraine GS)
20. Jack Rutledge (Enniskillen Royal GS)
21. Ethan Field (RBAI)
22. Niall Armstrong (RBAI)
23. Bruce Houston (Ballymena Academy)
24. Angus Kernohan (Ballymena Academy)
25. Aaron Sexton (Bangor GS)
26. Ben Webb (Campbell College)

Team Management:

Head Coach: James Topping

Assistant Head Coach: Bryan Young

Assistant Coaches: Gavin Murray and Chris Nash

Strength and conditioning coach: Matthew Maguire

Physiotherapist: Jason Patton

Doctor: Ryan Hamilton

Resources Manager: Adrian Walker

Manager: Richard Clingan

Meanwhile, across town at Osborne Park the Hughes Insurance Sponsored Ulster U19 team claimed the U19 Inter Provincial Championship when they defeated a spirited Connacht U19 team by 66-7. It was a superb team performance by the Ulster U19 team who ran in nine tries in the process. The Ulster team took an early 7-0 lead when Tom Stapley cut through the Connacht defence to score a try with less than one minute on the clock. Callum Smith added the conversion. After fourteen minutes Jonny Stewart cut through to score from a scrum, with Callum Smith adding the extras, to increase the Ulster lead to 14-0. This became 17-0 five minutes later when Callum Smith converted a penalty opportunity. Callum then scored a try, which he converted, to put the rampant Ulster team into a 24-0 lead. On the stroke of half time, having mounted a series of attacks, the Connacht team got some reward for their endeavours when Colm O’Flagherty scored a try, converted by Niall Gray, to leave Ulster with a 24-7 lead at the interval.

The Ulster team started the second half with another try in the first minute. Joe Finnegan touched down for the try, which was converted by Callum Smith, to put the Ulster team ahead by 31-7. Four minutes later Mark Keane ran in for a try, converted by Callum Smith, to increase the Ulster lead to 38-7. Joe Finnegan then scored his second try of the game, again converted by Callum Smith, to put Ulster into a 45-7 lead. Mark Keane then capped a fine display with his second try of the game. Callum Smith added the extras and Ulster now had a 52-7 lead. The Ulster team continued to play their fluent brand of rugby and Ali Burke got in for a try. Callum Smith converted the try to secure a 59-7 lead for the Ulster team. Connacht never lost their commitment to the game and with time running out were on the attack in the Ulster 22m area. A loose pass was intercepted by James Hume who showed a clean pair of heals to the opposition before touching down for the try. Callum Smith maintained his 100% kicking record in the game when he converted the ninth Ulster try of the game. The final whistle blew and it was the Ulster U19 team that celebrated their impressive 66-7 victory and, with it, the IRFU U19 Interprovincial Championship.

Ulster U19 team v Connacht Saturday 17th September Osborne Park

1/Callum Reid Royal Belfast Academical Institution

2/James Boyle Bangor RFC

3/Tom O’Toole Campbell College, Belfast (Captain)

4/John McCusker Rainey RFC

5/Alistair Burke Ballyclare High School

6/Aaron Hall Ballynahinch RFC

7/Matthew Agnew Bangor Grammar School

8/Joe Dunleavy Letterkenny RFC

9/Jonny Stewart Queen’s University RFC

10/Michael Lowry Royal Belfast Academical Institution

11/Joe Finnegan Royal Belfast Academical Institution

12/Tom Stapley Exiles

13/James Hume Royal Belfast Academical Institution

14/Mark Keane Royal Belfast Academical Institution

15/Callum Smith Malone RFC

16/Claytan Milligan Down High School (Replacement Hooker)

17/Tyler Arnold Belfast High School (Replacement Loose Head Prop)

18/Corrie Barrett Royal Belfast Academical Institution (Replacement Tight Head Prop)

19/James Nelson Campbell College, Belfast

20/Jack Barry Glendinning Campbell College, Belfast

21/Rhys O Donnell Royal Belfast Academical Institution

22/Cormac Fox Armagh RFC      23/Michael Stronge Ballymena Academy

Ulster U19 Management team

Head Coach Kieran Campbell

Assistant Coaches Willie Anderson John Creighton David Creighton

Age Grade Manager Michael Black

S&C Coach Amy Davis

Video Analyst Bryan Young

GPS Analyst Simon MacLeod

Kit Manager Tim Morton

Physiotherapist Ritchie Johnston

Doctor Dr Ryan Hamilton

Manager Barney McGonigle

There was a full list of Ulster Schools’ friendly fixtures played on Saturday 17^th September.

Rainey Endowed School and Dalriada School played for the Arthur Topping Memorial Cup in a game that finished as a 12-12 draw. Rainey ES scored a first half try through their Year 12 winger, Ciaran Doyle. The conversion was missed but the Rainey team had a 5-0 lead. Dalriada responded with a try from Luke Pollock, which Patrick Elliott converted, to put the Dalriada School team into a 7-5 lead at the break.

The second half saw the Rainey ES team take a 12-7 lead when David Dripps touched down for a try which was converted by Karl Warner. A stained period of pressure from Dalriada ended when Jack Dowey ran in for an unconverted try to draw the scores level at 12-12. Rainey Endowed went all out looking for a winner but the Dalriada defence held firm and the Arthur Topping Cup was shared at the end of the game.

Methodist College, Belfast travelled to Dublin to play Belvedere College in a game the Methody team won by 34-8. The Methody team had built up a 15-3 lead by the interval with a try, conversion and penalty from Paul Kerr and a try from Cameron Kelly. In reply the Belvedere College team kicked a first half penalty.

The second half saw the Methodist College team dominate proceedings with Colin Larmour, Matt Neil and Jonny Jordan all scoring tries. Paul Kerr was successful with two conversion kicks. Belvedere College did manage to score a consolation try in the closing stages of the game.

Belfast Royal Academy travelled to play Dublin Catholic University School and came back from a 15-0 deficit at half time to win the game by 17-15. Lewis Davidson and Cormac McCracken scored second half tries with Conor McAuley converting both tries and securing the win with a penalty.

Ballyclare High School hosted Campbell College in a game the Ballyclare team won by 16-15. The age grade Inter Pros impacted on both teams with Campbell College losing some seven players to the Ulster Schools’ and Ulster U19 teams. Harry Owens scored an unconverted first half try for the Campbell team with Will Davis successful with a penalty kick. Adam Clarke converted a first half penalty for the Ballyclare HS team with Jonny Crockett touching down for a try to see the scoreboard read 8-8 at halftime.

James Nelson gave the Ballyclare HS team a 13-8 lead when he touched down for an unconverted try. Campbell College then scored an intercept try through Will Davis. Will converted his try to give his team a 15-13 lead. Close to the end of the game Adam Clarke sealed the 16-15 win for the Ballyclare High School team when he was successful with a penalty kick.

Royal School, Armagh hosted St Gerard’s College from Bray in a game the St Gerard’s team won by 33-23.

The RS Armagh team started slowly and a loose kick was punished by a clinical counter attack from St. Gerard’s who scored a converted try to go into a 7-0 lead. Armagh responded with a Glen Faloon penalty but some slack defending saw St. Gerard’s score after a number of picks and go’s that saw them move 14-3 ahead. Glen Faloon then added another penalty before Ryan O’Neill made a great break after good work from Benjamin Boyd to score and bring the score to 14-11. St Gerard’s scored a converted try just before the break to give them a 21-11 lead at the interval.

The Royal School, Armagh team came out of the blocks at the start of the half and great inter play between forwards and backs saw Callum Whiteside on hand to touch down in the corner. The home side threw caution to the wind and another score by Matthew Kilic saw them take a 23-21 lead for the first time in the match. St Gerard’s then took advantage of Armagh errors in the final ten minutes when they ran in two tries, one of which was converted, to leave the final score reading 33-23 in favour of the visitors.

Portadown College hosted Bangor Grammar School in a game played in ideal conditions which the Portadown College team won by 15-5. Portadown College opened their account when they took advantage of a big midfield tackle from Daniel Smith. Bangor spilt the ball and a good series of passes ended when scrum half, Drew Fleck, sprinted clear to touch down for an unconverted try which gave the home team a 5-0 lead. Matthew Neill then converted a penalty opportunity to increase the Portadown College lead to 8-0. The Bangor GS team responded in a positive manner and touched down for an unconverted try to leave the scoreline reading 8-5 in favour of the Portadown College team at the interval.

After the break Bangor tried hard to break down the dogged Portadown College defence, but inaccuracy at key times put paid to any real scoring opportunities they had. Following a lineout set play and a series of organised moves which saw the ball moved wide to Matthew Neill, a perfect 2v1 pass released Brett Flack who scored under the Bangor posts. Matthew Neill added the conversion to give the Portadown College team a 15-5 lead, a lead they held on to until the final whistle. This good win for Portadown College came on the back of noticeable performances from Alastair Gilpin in the second 2nd row, Stewart Hodgen and Jordan Taylor in the backrow, full back, Brett Flack, scrum half Drew Flack and Dylan Nelson on the wing.

Friends’ School, despite missing one player away with the Ireland Schools’ sevens squad and one player with the Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ U18 team, still had enough fire power to overwhelm Cambridge House by 76-7.

The Friends’ School team had built up a 43-0 lead by halftime with tries from Adam Scholfield, Alex O’Brien, who scored twice, Ben McCaughey, who scored twice, Adam Milligan and Henry Tolerton. Ben McCaughey was successful with four conversions

The second half saw Alex O’Brien complete his hat trick, Bradley Mulholland score twice, and David Newell and Edward Kyle run in one try apiece. Ben McCaughey was successful with four more conversions. Cambridge House scored a late converted try to leave the final score reading 76-7 in favour of the Friends’ School, Lisburn team.

Enniskillen Royal Grammar School had built up a 17-0 lead by half time against Regent House before going on to win the game by 22-5. Team captain, Andrew Crawford, took advantage of good work at the breakdown from his team mates when he finished things off with a try. Reece Smyton added the conversion to put his team into a 7-0 lead. Reece then converted a penalty kick to increase that lead to 10-0. Further Enniskillen Royal GS pressure on the Regent House team resulted in a penalty try, which Reece Smyton converted, to see his team into a 17-0 lead at the break.

The second half saw the Regent House team peg one score back when a concerted effort from the pack resulted in an unconverted try from Kyle van Geisen. Enniskillen RGS went on to dominate proceedings in the latter stages of the game and sealed their 22-5 victory when Jonny Irvine ran in for an unconverted try late in the game.

Banbridge Academy hosted Sullivan Upper School in a game the Sullivan Upper team won by 28-10. Patrick Casement scored a try, which Rory Jemphrey converted, to give the Sullivan Upper team a 7-0 lead after fifteen minutes. Five minutes later the Banbridge Academy prop, Robert Mathers, scored an unconverted try to reduce the arrears to 7-5. Sullivan Upper then took a 14-5 lead into the break when Ruairi Meharg scored a try which was converted by Rory Jemphrey.

Midway through the second half two quick tries from Andy Weir and Stephen Moore, both of which were converted by Rory Jemphrey, increased the Sullivan Upper lead to 28-5. With five minutes of the game remaining good work from Jack Dologan, Ross Cartmill and Jonny McIntosh, paved the way for an unconverted try from Chrissy Patterson to leave the final score reading 28-10 in favour of the Sullivan Upper School team.

Omagh Academy travelled to play Coleraine Grammar School and came away with an 11-0 lead. Kyle Beattie kicked an early Omagh penalty to give his team a 3-0 lead. Twenty minutes later Kyle kicked a second penalty to increase the Omagh Academy lead to 6-0. On the stroke of halftime, the impressive Nathan Sides ran in from the base of a scrum to touch down for an unconverted and increase the Omagh Academy to 11-0 at the break.

The second half saw both teams attack at every opportunity but both sets of defences were well-organised and nothing got through. At the no-side whistle it was the Omagh Academy team that celebrated their well-deserved 11-0 victory.

Wallace High School hosted Castleknock College from Dublin in a game the Wallace High School team won by 31-17. Josh Cardosi scored two ties for the Wallace HS team with Stephen Courtney, Sam Cardosi and Andrew Millar each scoring one. Matthew Pentland was successful with three out of five conversion attempts.

Wellington College defeated Larne Grammar School by 27-7 when the teams met at the Carolan Road venue. In the first half Wellington College 2nd Row, Niall McGrath, full back, Marcus Smyth and hooker, James Milligan, all scored tries, one of which was converted by Adam McCluskey.

Marcus Smyth completed his hat trick in the second half when he took advantage of good work from team captain, Aaron Nelson, and debutant scrum half, Ollie McKibbin. Morgan Wharry scored a late try for the Larne Grammar School team which was converted by Jonathan Farquhar. However, the Wellington College team had controlled the game for long periods of time and celebrated their deserved 27-7 win at the end of the game.

The Down High School team was without three members of the Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ squad when they played Grosvenor Grammar School. They did, however, welcome back Zac Ward who was released from the Ulster U19 squad for one half of this game. The Down High School team won the game by 14-7. Harry Hitchens kicked two first half penalties for the Down High School team, to give them a 6-0 lead. Grosvenor GS stormed back and, following a lineout in the Down High 22m area, a series of plays finished when Jos McConkey touched down under the Down High posts for a try. Daniel Martin added the conversion to see the Grosvenor Grammar School team into a 7-6 lead at half time.

Harry Hitchens was successful with his third penalty of the game to see the Down High team take an early 9-7 second half lead. The Down High School pack, with Zac Ward now back in action, started to really dominate proceedings. Their hard work paved the way for a Jack Carlisle “kick pass” which was fielded by Ronan Patterson who ran in for a try. The conversion attempt was unsuccessful but the Down High School team now had a 14-7 lead-a lead they held until the final whistle