Larne RFC Notes II XV 66 v Banbridge RFC IV XV 5 + III XV 38 v Belfast Harlequins RFC IV XV 52 & U17 I XV 56 v Limavady RFC U17 I XV 5

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Sat 12th Oct, TBC. Larne 56 – 5 Limavady
2 wins from 2 for Larne
by Stephen Johnston

Larne made it 2 wins from 2 with an excellent win at Glynn on Sat.

Try scorers included Joe Johnston 4, Joel Johnston, Odhran McKay 2, Stuart
Andrews 2 & Mark 1 .

Highlight of the match was Aaron Johnstons touchline conversion & McKay who has found his position in the front row & scored a brace of tries – the first of his career.

The lads have been excellent in training & are gradually building a good team with fitness & skills building with weekly Tue & Thurs sessions.

Sat 12th Oct, 2:30pm. Belfast HQ 52 – 38 Larne

Quick tries by Harlequins sets up win against Larne
by Stephen Johnston

On Saturday 12th October Larne travelled to Belfast to take on Harlequins 4s and were defeated 52-38.

A slow start for Larne saw them concede 3 early tries to a strong Harlequins offence and lose M. Gilbert to injury, J. McCluggage stepping in to take his place.

This only served to fire up the Larne spirit and had Stuart Johnston carve a path through the Harlequins defense to score beside the posts.

The remainder of the half saw Larne and Harlequins trading tries, with C. Aston going over in the corner after some delightful passing from the backs and J. McCluggage running in under the posts after stepping and handing off several defenders. It also saw J. Shirley leaving the game through injury to be replaced by R. Adair on the stroke of halftime.

The second half started a lot better than the first for Larne, who now had switched on and were fighting hard to level the score. Solid defending from the forwards around the ruck prevented Harlequins from forcing their way through in that area and instead resorted to using the full force of their pack by mauling the ball over the line to open the scoring again.

Larne responded quickly when forward R. Adair found himself out in the back line and sold a dummy to the opposition before dancing round them to score.

As in the first half both teams traded tries again. Larne being awarded a penalty try and S. Marshall scoring under the posts after Harlequins were sold another dummy. This left Larne 7 points behind with 10 minutes left.

Larne set up to attack the ‘Quins line in the hopes of punching through using the strength of McCluggage and the speed of Murray and Jason Johnson but in a cruel twist the ball fell loose and was pounced upon but Harlequins who ran it in to score the final try of the game.

Another good performance by the Larne squad despite the score line.

Line-up: J. Butler, B. Meikle, M. Gilbert, Z. Bartley, A. Ferguson, R. Lough, A. Darragh, Stuart Johnston, A. O’Toole, S. Marshall, J. Shirley, Jamie Johnson, A. Murray, S. McAllister, C. Aston, J. McCluggage, R. Adair

Sat 12th Oct, 2:30pm. Larne 66 – 5 Banbridge

Strong first half sets up great score for Larne 2nds by Stephen Johnston

Larne 2nds produced a wonderful display on Saturday when they hosted Banbridge in a punishing 66-5 win.

From the kick off Larne made their authority count when Johnny Mckinty, returning from injury, surged up the field for good territory. Banbridge tried to shut the early momentum out from their own try line, but Peter Reid carried well before offloading to Mckinty to score Larne’s opening try.

McBride was on hand to score the next try when he spotted a gap in the defensive line and increased Larne’s growing lead.

Ryan McAlister was next to show how well he could run with the ball when a 2 on 1 move was passed out to Brian Blair to race down the sideline and score.

Banbridge tried hard to run with the ball, but a turnover by the Larne forwards gave Bobby Garrett his first try of the day. The second came shortly when Mark McIlheron’s run from a penalty was well supported by Garrett.

Larne became more ruthless in the set pieces when Luke Cameron competed well in the Banbridge lineout, stealing ball for the home side.

Garrett being ever more present in the game, ran a great line and offloaded to Gary Knox to score his first of 2 of the day.

Peter Reid marshalled Larne’s defensive line when he manhandled Banbridges attack to create a brilliant solo turnover.

Last play of the half saw neat footwork by Nick Kelso hold the ball up and the support from Knox to score in the right corner.

Half time score 45-0 to Larne.

The fast paced tempo of the first half seemed a distance away as a tighter game developed between the 2 sides. Banbridge looked to their backs and created some good phases to show what they could do. However Bobby Garrett’s hat trick try dented their hopes of creating an early fightback as he sauntered over the tryline.

Man mountain Peter Reid leaped high from the resulting kick off and stormed up the pitch looking for a solo effort, but a try saving tackle was put in from the Banbridge full back halting the Larne man’s charge.
Garrett’s man of the match performance would’ve been topped by a 4th score through a spectacular chip and chase kick, but was fumbled at the line.

A superb effort from the Banbridge centre, danced his way through for Banbridges only consolation.
Larne’s final tries came from Aaron Carter and Mark McIlheron. McBride converting 8 out of 10 kicks in a good display.

Final score 66-5.

Larne: D. Lough (c), R. McAlister, S. McWhirter, G. Liddle, P. Reid, L. Cameron, M. McIlheron, J. McKinty, B. Garrett, A. McBride, N. Kelso, G. Knox, C. Moore, B. Blair, A. Carter

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