Rugby at Cambridge House Grammar School
The rugby coaching staff at CHGS was supplemented in September 2014 by the arrival of Mr. John Nicholl as the new boys’ PE teacher. He is an experienced coach with a Level 2 coaching qualification and is currently the assistant backs’ coach for Ballymena RFC 1st XV. Mr Nicholl is supported by the two Rugby Development Coaches – Mr. Chris Smyth and Mr. Jamie Smith. Chris has been coaching at CHGS for three years and currently plays for BRFC 1stXV Jamie is a past pupil of CHGS and played professional rugby for both Ulster and Gwent Dragons. Their collective rugby experience is shaping the school’s rugby squads and will hopefully lead to increased participation and an improvement on the playing fields at Cambridge Avenue.
Mr. Seamus Mallon has been employed as a temporary Technology teacher and he also played professional rugby for Ulster in recent years. He assists Mr. Maurice Bell with the U14 squad. Mr. Michael Glass is guided by Mr Tim Small, another past pupil, currently setting the All Ireland league 1B alight with BRFC. He brings much needed knowledge and enthusiasm to the practice sessions. Mr. Maurice Finlay is the coach for the U13 teams and is a leading player at Ballyclare Rugby Club. He is supported by BRFC 1st XV player Jordan Foster.
Mr. John Nicholl has also recruited past pupils Andrew Cundell, Philip Small, Thomas McIlroy and Callum Patterson to aid with the Under 12 Saturday morning camp. This has all been made possible by the continued support from the parent-led Rugby Development Group which has seen a recent change of leadership. After many years of dedicated service to this group, Steven Spence has passed on the Chairmanship to Sam Wilson on a temporary basis. Mr Spence has been a calm but determined force behind this group and his input will be sorely missed.
The Rugby Development Group has played a very important role in assisting the school in moving rugby forward. They have assisted in previous years in supporting tours, in particular two tours to Rome, obtaining sponsorship for shirts, improving the pitches and providing training equipment. We, the coaching staff at Cambridge House would like to take this opportunity to thank the Rugby Development Group for tonight, and you all for supporting the event to assist in the fund raising for our fitness and conditioning suite.
Michael Glass
THE CONTRIBUTION OF CAMBRIDGE HOUSE TO CLUB RUGBY
By Guy McCullough President of BRFC and past VP of Cambridge House Boy’s School
A few years after first taking in boys, Cambridge House began to provide aspiring young rugby players to the club scene, with the local Ballymena Rugby Football Club, inevitably and understandably, gaining most advantage, although some of those who went on to further education, played their rugby at the college of their choice.
Soon well-coached, capable Cambridge House school-leavers were challenging for First XV places at Eaton Park, while other less skilful, or maybe less ambitious boys held places in the club’s lower sides.
Pride of place must go to Brian Robinson, who joined Ballymena in the eighties and who, in spite of receiving a serious knee injury which threatened his early career, played his first game for the Ireland international side against France on 2nd of February 1991, and then went on to collect a further 24 caps. Brian was also part of the touring British and Irish Lions team.
Dean MaCartney, who had toured Australia with the Irish Schools’ side, also served Ballymena with distinction, being their captain in the 1998-99 season and he also played for a spell with French club Pau. Very deserving of the full International cap which he unfortunately never achieved, Dean had to be content with representing Ulster and playing in a final Irish trial.
Around the same time, Mark Allen, David Cochrane, John Johnston, Stephen Cameron and Willie McAllister and the Wasson twins – Robert and John, all played regularly, although not together, for Ballymena First XV, while many others figured in the lesser Eaton Park sides. Then in 2003, the Ballymena team who won the All-Ireland League Championship, defeating Clontarf in a thrilling final at Lansdowne Road, included two ex- Cambridge House boys in Norman McKernan and Derrick Topping, the latter also representing Ulster on a number of occasions.
Among quite a large number who, over a period of time, threw in their lot with the Ballymena club, but mostly figuring on the club’s middle-order teams, were Uel Hoey, Glen McKnight, Paddy Irwin, Brian Armstrong, Shane Glynn, Harry Gaston, the Johnston brothers, (Richard, Ian and Alan) Wallace Gregg and his brother Rab, to name but a few. Rab Gregg of course later returned to the school to teach PE and to coach rugby.
Jamie Smith represented Ballymena and Ulster before joining Gwent Dragons in Wales, but injury cut short his very promising career. He returned to Eaton Park, but had to retire very prematurely. Roger McBurney also played for the Ballymena senior side before joining Ballynahinch.
Over recent years, the representation of Cambridge House boys in the Ballymena sides has steadily increased, and presently Stephen Mulholland, Tim Small, Philip Small, Darrell Montgomery, Christopher da Mata, and the Cundell brothers, Christopher and Andrew, are all challenging for First XV places at Eaton Park, with quite a number of others playing in the club’s lower sides.
Adrian Hamilton, who last season won the Ulster Club Player of the Year award, has temporarily gone to Scotland to complete a further degree, but will soon return to Eaton Park at the conclusion of his studies.
