ALL GO AT ANTRIM RFC
After finishing runners up in the league last season, Antrim RFC have been building the foundations for next season and beyond, with some fantastic, behind the scenes work from all of the members.
Ahead of the forthcoming season, the Antrim boys unveiled their new kit, manufactured by BLK and sponsored by Redz Piano Bar and Grill, Devine Design, JTec IT Solutions, Hutchinson Care Homes, Antrim Credit Union, Douglas Transport and Modern Tyres.
The players unveiled the kit in the close season at a photo shoot with Devine Design, and the kit was tested in the club’s first tour in almost 10 years, to Glasgow where the Antrim boys defeated Hyndland RFC at the Glasgow Warriors home of Scotstoun stadium in what was a close game.
The club also took part in the Ulster Bank Rugby Force initiative to encourage club members to volunteer to clean up their grounds and carry out maintenance for a day. A large turnout made the day a roaring success with the club receiving an array of training equipment as a reward for their efforts.
Pre Season training is well underway and while the club waved goodbye to Aaron Snowden and Toby Rowe at the end of the season, a rather positive recruitment drive saw Antrim add several players to the squad along with the return of former Antrim captain and hooker Simon Kernohan.
The squad have been training hard under the watchful eye of Richard Smyth, who has done a remarkable job of restructuring training over the past year. With numbers swelling, Smyth has put the boys through their paces and upped the intensity, highlighting fitness as the key to closing out games.
In other news, Antrim RFC have been nominated and shortlisted for their Viking Minis project in which the minis section has been nominated and shortlisted for Coaching Project of the Year by SportNI. The club successfully developed and maintained a coaching strategy within the Antrim Borough, working with schools and youth clubs to field a few teams in local tournaments at the end of the season. However the season highlights for the children included UTV coverage of the squad training with Ireland and Ulster winger Tommy Bowe and playing in front of a full house at Ravenhill during Ulster and Saracens’ Heineken cup game. With the new school term fast approaching, it is expected that the Vikings will return to action in September.
On Saturday the 30th September the First Team will be embarking on the Captain’s Pre Season run through Antrim Town to raise money for all sections of the club. A fully kitted Antrim squad will stop off at a few local businesses along the way and finish with a Barbeque for the squad and their families for their hard work over the close season.
