Saturday 27th March. Report by Roy Lawton.
Ards senior status in the North Down area has been secured for another season after their emphatic 44 – 11 victory over Dublin side, Suttonians on Saturday. Leading up to this game Ards senior status was still in doubt and with them sitting 12th in the AIB League table, nothing short of a win would do. But what actually happened on the day was something that only dreams are made of with all the principals of play in evident as player after player went forward with possession, supported the ball carrier and continued with the attack resulting in a magnificent 6 tries and a winning bonus point, before the game was over.
The game kicked-off with Ards facing into a howling squall so it was vitally important that they try and keep the ball to hand and not kick away possession needlessly. Four minutes into the game and good early pressure from John Dowey’s forwards resulted in a successful Michael Lawton penalty. A few minutes later Stewart Paul released Taylor Ferguson through the centre to make good ground before offloading to the ever present Scott Young who ran in to score a good unconverted try, to the right of the posts.
On 10 minutes, Suttonians out-half Simon Lewis, snatched a somewhat speculative but successful drop goal on the far side to show that they were prepared to go for points from anywhere in the ground which helped Ards to refocus the mind.
Sixteen minutes into the game and Stewart Paul was in action again this time drawing his man before passing out wide to David Armstrong on the right wing to score the first of his two tries again to the right of the uprights. This conversion was also missed, as the howling wind kept blowing unabated.
Despite being dwarfed by the visitors two huge second rows, Ards forwards competed well in the lineout with Conor Piper having to be on top of his game to hit his target, as the wind swept down from Scrabo and on out to sea. John Dowey, Kenny Heaslip and Jaydon Hill all performed majestically in this department also and either spoiled or stole numerous Suttonians ball on a number of occasions.
Twenty seven minutes on the clock and Stewart Paul was rocking as he made another superb break down the right side of the pitch. This time his support came in from Michael Lawton who took a well timed pass and raced in under the posts to score Ards third try in the half, which he also converted.
Suttonians fought back and were eventually rewarded with a penalty which Lewis secured, as the game headed towards the break.
This was exceptional intelligent rugby from Ards, who were keen and able to run the ball at the visitors as they racked up the points to improve their chances of survival in the AIL.
In the second half, Suttonians did almost the same as Ards in the first and kept the ball to hand and were able to score a well taken unconverted try courtesy of Darragh Mulligan. On 51 minutes Ards forwards showed their determination and managed to force an error on the halfway line for Lawton to convert with a massive long range effort, to get the Ards account going again.
In the scrums Ards more than held their own against some big lumps from south of the boarder who were well pinned back when they tried to break with some ferocious tackling from Andy Hassard and Kenny McCombe. Ards were on a high and nothing was going to stop them getting their fourth try.
Fifty six minutes into the game and Lawton fielded a swirling kick on the right hand side of the pitch and then hit a visionary cross-field kick for David Armstrong on the left wing to rush onto and win the race against his opposite number to get to the ball first and score another excellent try, converted by Lawton.
Who would have predicted Ards getting four tries in the same match this season, never mind a possible winning bonus point to boot.
More good work from the forwards and Mark Banford whipped the ball out to Taylor Ferguson who opened up and passed to Scott Young on his left. Young then made more good yardage and passed on out to Michael Lawton who had come into the line from his full-back position. Lawton then split the remaining defence and scored another great try, which he also converted.
The Ards front three of Johnny Millar, Conor Piper and Andrew Foster were working overtime putting in some big hits and terrier type ferocity in the lose as they helped disrupt the visitors distribution and keep them on the back foot. While the big three of Dowey, Heaslip and Hill pumped their way up the park with some strong carries and solid platforms.
Ards were looking more than good in their last AIL home game of the season, but were not finished with their try fest yet. Another good bit of fielding by the home side allowed Trevor Devlin to get his wings on and fly down the left wing, supported by Taylor Ferguson. Ferguson powered on and popped the ball on out for Michael Lawton to nip between two covering defenders and score his third try in the match, which he also converted to bring his points tally on the day up to a stunning 29.
This was a fantastic whole team effort pushing Ards up one place to 11th spot in the league table and out of danger of relegation, with one game remaining. A much relieved coach, Cois Beukes was delighted with the coming of age of his young squad, who have just got better and better as the season has progressed.
As this was the last home game of the season, a special note of thanks is in order for a number of people who though mostly stay in the background, do a lot for the benefit of the Club and the 1st team in particular. Dr Michael Doyle, who attends all AIL games in his professional capacity, to assist and administer excellent medical cover to those who may require it. Liz Lawton and her twins, Andrew and Timothy, who scurry about retrieving lost balls from the waste ground and take team photos. Mark Robinson and his catering staff, for turning out some great meals this season. Kevin Ferguson who braves the elements on roof tops or high ground as he records the action on DVD for later analysis and. Billy Dickson for acting as the fourth official on AIL match days. It takes a small army of dedicated volunteers to help keep things ticking over on match days and to the above mentioned people the 1st XV management and players extend their sincere gratitude.
Ards squad: A Foster, C Piper, J Millar, J Dowey, K Heaslip, A Hassard, K McCombe, J Hill, M Banford, S Paul, D Armstrong, T Ferguson, S Young, T Devlin, M Lawton, J Wylie, J Garrett, D Algie, J Dawson, K McIlwaine
