When Armagh travelled to Bangor, they had to put the league table to the back of their minds. Although Bangor had yet to win a game this season they had earned the reputation of always putting up a brave fight right to the final whistle. Following steady rain all Friday the pitch was in remarkably good condition. The grounds staff had the pitch spiked in an effort to drain off the residual surface water but, although the grass was in fine condition the top inch or so remained sticky. The sun was shining brightly but a biting wind blowing the length of the pitch kept the temperatures in the Arctic parameters.
Armagh played the first half into the wind and within two minutes of the kick-off left winger, Andy Willis, scored a signature try in the left corner when he appeared to waltz round his opposite defender. Steensons’s conversion went wide so the score line read 0-5. Armagh were seen to experiment with the out-half position in that Alexis Luneau had been selected in an attempt to speed up the ball service to the talented Armagh back-line.
Eight minutes into the game the Armagh right-winger, Matty Irwin, scored a fine try. Again, the conversion went wide in the difficult breezy conditions to leave the score at 0-10. Bangor immediately replied with a try after some very neat handling. Again the conversion was unsuccessful but the score at 5-10 reflected that the home team were not going to make it easy for Armagh. Shortly after the restart Armagh were awarded a free kick when Bangor engaged early in a scrum. Andy Hughes took a tap kick and after several fine passes Willis went in for his second try of the afternoon. Steenson’s conversion was on target, which brought the score to 5-17. Despite this score the Bangor pack were beginning to dominate the scrums and were seen to be pretty sharp in the loose also! As the game entered the second quarter Willis scored yet again in the right corner. This secured his hat trick and the vital bonus point. Not to be content Willis took a fine pass from flanker, Johnny Clarke and scored yet again in the corner. With the successful conversions, the score was now 5-31. Just before the half time break a Bangor forward scored and the conversion brought the score to 12-31. It has to be emphasised that, despite the score line, the home team continued to play with a passion and tenacity seldom seen in a losing side.
Following the break Armagh lock forward, Brian Bassett, was substituted as he was suffering from ‘flu. The ARMAGH TEAM was shuffled with Johnny Allen coming on at inside centre and Colin Atkinson returning to the flanker position. The Bangor forwards continued to bully the Armagh pack but the were unable to put any points on the board. Armagh’s prop, Brian McConnell, was suffering with a back injury that didn’t help the visitors scrimmaging. To add to the dilemma, Armagh’s flanker, Peter Elliott, went down with an elbow injury but continued. Alex Lunau, however, was forced to leave the field with an ankle injury, which led Armagh to use their substitute, Stewart McMahon, to good effect.
The final quarter saw Armagh manage to feed some good ball to their backs, which resulted in yet another score from Andy Willis. This brought his try count for the afternoon to five! The conversion came off the post to leave the score at 12-36. The final try of the afternoon came from some beautiful handling which sent Colin Atkinson through the centre evading four tackles and touching down just right of the posts. The conversion brought the final score to 12-43.
It has to be said that despite all their effort the Bangor side failed to score a point in the second half. They did manage to bully the visiting pack in the scrums but the dominance was partly due to the Armagh injury situation. When Armagh managed to get the ball service to their backs scores resulted in almost every occasion.
Next week sees Armagh entertain Academy at the Palace Grounds. This team have shown that they are more than able to sustain their place in Qualifying One League. Armagh need to take a long, hard look at their recent performances if they are to shine before the end of the season.
