It was a day of mixed fortunes for the ‘Town senior section as the 1sts snatched defeat from the jaws of victory at Roughfort while the 2nds continued winning ways at Neillsbrook and the 3rds were outmuscled by PSNI at Newforge.
Down at Academy it was a balmy Saturday afternoon and Randalstown started much the better of the two but lost out at the death 21-15 to Academy.
Disappointingly they failed to breach the try line despite some lively play and a desire to spread the ball at every opportunity in the opening gambits and all scores came courtesy of the boot of Dan McGlade.
Several good breaks by the forwards, notably Hume and Allen took ‘town close and with the lineout functioning well Mike Smith, Crawford and Connolly combined well in the home 22 to be rewarded with a penalty which McGlade slotted over to open the scoring. This served to galvanise Academy into action and they stormed up the pitch but the ‘town defence were up to the task and the set piece saw ball turned over to ease the pressure as it was cleared back to halfway.
The relief was short lived however as a lineout didn’t go to plan and the defence found themselves at sixes and sevens allowing the pacey Academy backs to break through and score.
From the restart ‘Town struck back and after a well taken lineout Allen broke like a winger up the park and found Wilson in support but still the line beckoned to no avail. ‘Town pressure saw a further penalty opportunity converted by McGlade to nudge them back into the lead. Morgan and Hume had entered the fray as Laverty and Allen took a break after their exertions and Randalstown continued to attack. A further penalty stretched the lead to 9-5 as half time approached and the score certainly reflected the difference between the teams.
Allen re-entered the fray but this was only short lived as he had to retire with a hamstring injury. The rejigging required seemed to disrupt Randalstown’s flow and the second half got off to a scrappy start. Struggling in the set piece they were turned over and Academy converted a penalty opportunity of their own to narrow the gap to 9-8 in favour of Randalstown.
Eventually as the clock ticked down McGlade split the uprights again but with only a narrow 4 point lead it was all very edgy. Galvanised by encouragement from their touchline Academy hit back in some style with a try out wide to go into a 13-12 lead. ‘Town then spurned a difficult penalty opportunity as the wind was sufficient to take the ball just wide of the upright. They continued to work hard with crash ball by Laverty proving most effective as he handed McGlade a further slightly easier penalty, which was duly converted.
A most tenuous lead 15-13 going into the final minutes should have seen ‘Town home with the points but Academy contrived another penalty opportunity and their kicker was on target for only the second time of the afternoon. A somewhat dejected ‘Town team conceded a try and despite strenuous efforts to redress this ended up going down 21-15.
This was a disappointing encounter against an Academy side who have now recorded 3 wins from 3 against Randalstown and on each occasion the ‘town men should have emerged victorious. For the first time in Qualifying 2 substitutes can be used and this was news greeted with enthusiasm as ‘town were more than unfortunate in the injury stakes in the last two seasons. Having seen the policy in action however it would appear that there are still a few lessons to be learnt in employing it most effectively as at times it seemed to be more of a disruption than an advantage.
On the plus side apart from an injury to Chrissie Allen, from which he will hopefully make a speedy recovery, ‘Town emerged unscathed to work hard in training this week before their first home game against Enniskillen next Saturday.
Meanwhile at Neillsbrook a vital contribution from Conor Murray saw Randalstown 2nds edge out their Donaghadee counterparts.
The young winger contributed 15 points including 2 tries as the seconds made it two out of two with a 20-19 win in a tight tussle.
There was little to choose between the two sides in the opening 10 minutes and it was a Murray penalty that opened the scoring. The visitors then took control and levelled after 17 minutes. Five minutes later they increased their lead when poor ‘Town defence allowed them to power through the middle and touch down under the posts leaving an easy conversion to edge them into a 10-3 lead.
Skipper Sammy Hyndman led by example and rallied his men with the back row in particular putting in a big shift and gradually the home team got on top. From a scrum in the visitor’s half Murray hit a great line through the defence to score under the posts. He added the extras with an easy conversion to level the scores.
‘Town’s defence was the one low point of the performance and almost cost them victory. Having gained a very kickable penalty in front of the posts they saw, much to the frustration of manager Sloane, the decision reversed for back chat. They did however end the half on top following a lineout close to the Donaghadee line. Scott Goodrich disrupted opposition ball and Hyndman pounced as it went loose to gather and scramble over in the corner taking the half time score to 15-10.
The second period was again nip and tuck with little to choose then Randalstown lost hooker Loughlin through illness and it took a few scrums for them to settle back into their rhythm. Back chat saw them in further trouble as twice penalties were marched forward 10 yards allowing Donaghadee to get within kickable range and move into a 19-15 lead.
‘Town always looked the more likely to score in the closing stages and McGarry was bundled into touch inches short of the line as the Donaghadee defence held out. Then with only minutes remaining ‘Town lost a player to the sin bin and looked to have blown their chances as Donaghadee edged their way into the home half.
Man of the Match Murray however had the final say when he intercepted on his own 22 and outsprinted the visiting defence to touch down under the posts and give ‘town victory by a point. Apart from his points contribution Murray’s defensive performance was also top notch with some crunching tackles.
Also worth a mention was the work rate of Strange and Millar in the pack and McWhirter at 9 who proved a constant thorn in the side of the opposition around the set pieces.
The seconds travel to Ballymoney next Saturday, never an easy venue, but they will hope to continue winning ways.
The 3rd XV travelled to Newforge and faced a PSNI 2nds which included many familiar faces from last year’s 1st XV.
The match started disasterously for the visitors when PSNi scored two early tries to take a 14-0 lead. Despite this setback the ‘Town side led by Adie Johnston defended well but the experience of the home side was evident as they ran in two further tries to give them a half time lead of 28-0.
The score does not reflect the hard work of a number of players including Pedro Conceiceao, Ash McClenaghan and Joel Mulholland who might all have scored tries with the rub of the green.
Injuries to Huw Bishop, Vernon Thom and Tommy Brownlees reduced the Randalstown options as the second half progressed and PSNI keep the scoreboard ticking over to run out eventual 48-0 winners.
Credit goes to new team manager Aaron Murray who managed to gather up 15 good men and true plus subs when the unavailability list stretched longer almost than the available. Comfort will be taken from some good performances by new players including Mike McFarland and Conor McCleary and from the return of experienced hands like Thom and Mark Mulholland as the 3rd XV continue to build and improve under the guidance of Murray and his assistance Curry.
The thirds entertain Larne 3rds at Neillsbrook next Saturday in what promises to be a tight encounter.
There is a pre-match lunch on Saturday afternoon and a few places are still available. Contact Adie Johnston to book your spot –adie_johnston@hotmail.com
A number of pro photographers have got involved with RRFC and we look forward to profiling their work. The pic attached (c) Dave Pettard with Marc Lawrence also contributing at the weekend.
