The 2014/15 Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup campaign started back in December when Antrim Grammar School and Strabane Academy played in the first of thirty one Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup games. The thirty first game will take place on St Patrick’s Day when the Royal Belfast Academical Institution team will play the Wallace High School team in the “Blue Riband” game of this prestigious competition.
These two teams have had a most successful season in terms of results achieved against other school teams from Ulster. The RBAI has lost just one game against another school from Ulster, Ballymena Academy, while the Wallace High School team has lost none.
It is for that fact alone the Royal Belfast Academical Institution team will probably be happy to accept the fact they will be seen as underdogs to lift the Ulster Schools’ Cup, a Cup they have won on many occasions. Then Belfast Inst team coaches, Dan Soper and Richard Hedley, will realise their team has reached the Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup final without having really expressed themselves on the pitch as positively as they would like. They are a talented outfit but will probably have to prepare for the final without the services of a number of key players. Charlie Fryers picked up an injury in the quarter-final game against Royal School, Armagh while James Hume and Conor Field are unlikely to have recovered from longer term injuries before St Patrick’s Day. Despite the loss of such key players the Belfast Inst team has the ability to play positive rugby with the ball in hand. There will be a huge onus on the pack to produce the quality possession their back division can thrive upon. TJ Dickson and Michael Lowry form an exciting half back partnership which has the ability to produce good game management skills. Michael belies his youth with his performances and positive approach to the game and much is expected of him in the final. He seems to have benefitted from a few weeks lay off as he recovered from a minor injury setback. He instils great confidence in the players outside him. In particular, Callum McLaughlin and Ben McGavock have formed an effective midfield partnership which has created the opportunities for the wide players such as Jack Conlin, Joe Finnegan and Andrew McGregor to score tries throughout the season. Matthew Young, Mark Keane and Patrick Dologhan provide essential back up to the Belfast Inst backline and these players create a healthy pressure on the coaches before final selections can be made.
The Royal Belfast Academical Institution team captain, Lewis McNamara, is well aware of the responsibilities that lie with him and his fellow forwards. There is competition for places in every position and, regardless of the starting eight, Lewis knows his pack will need to raise the level of performance compared to the semi-final. John Dickson, Ryan McComiskey and Jake Chambers had to work hard to gain parity at scrum time in the semi-final. They will have to work much harder on Tuesday. Garrett Bell and Conor Watson did well at lineout time against Coleraine AI in the semi-final. They will have watched the Wallace HS lineout in their semi-final against Methodist College with interest and will hope to gain more than just parity in the final. Lewis has a number of very talented backrow colleagues with which to work. His vice-captain, Mark Mairs gets through a lot of work while Ethan Harbinson, who this time last year picked up a Player of the Year Award at Banbridge Academy, has continued his development as a very clever player at the breakdown. Patrick Nicholas has impressed with his performances when he gets pitch time and will hope for a positive run out on St Patrick’s Day.
The Wallace High School team has grown into accepting the tag of “Clear Favourites” to lift the Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup this season. Should that be the case it would be an historic occasion for a couple of reasons- it would be the first time a Wallace High School team has won the Ulster Schools’ Cup and it will be the first Ulster Schools’ Cup final to be played at the recently refurbished Kingspan Stadium. The Wallace High School team has had an outstanding season, in terms of results, thus far. They are undefeated against any team they have played with the only “slight” blemish on that record being a 17-17 draw against the RBAI team back in December. Team coaches, Derek Suffern and Neil Hinds, have a squad of players to work with that has developed a positive mentality to the game in recent seasons. Some of their players have played in a Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Medallion Shield final, some have won a Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ 2ndxv Cup final and the entire squad has come through a tough Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup semi-final encounter against Methodist College this season. This is a very talented group of Wallace High School players. Philip Hylands, Ben Finlay, Neil Kilpatrick, Jonny Stewart, Ben Pentland, Max Trouton and Andrew Cardosi have all gained representative honours with Ulster Schools’ and Ulster U19 teams earlier in the season. Jonny has been involved with the Ireland Schools’ team and all of the players came under the microscope of National Age Grade Management teams in the semi-final. Their performances will be closely monitored in the final as well.
The Wallace pack will be working hard to ensure a lineout that, at times, malfunctioned in the semi-final, is working effectively in the final. The Wallace High School scrum will be tested in the final and Jonny Blair, Ben Pentland and Andrew Weir, in the Wallace High School front row, will be working hard to achieve positive outcomes on Tuesday. They will look to players such as Patrick Ferguson and Gary Dillon to assist them. The Wallace High School backrow of captain, Sam Moore, Andrew Irvine and Max Trouton is a particularly clever trio and much will be expected of them right throughout the game. The depth of talent available throughout the Wallace High School squad was exemplified in the semi-final game when replacement player, Gary Chan, created the opportunity for Ben Finlay to run in for the winning score, a score that secured the place of Wallace High School in the Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup Final.
The Danske Bank Ulster Schools’ Cup Final will be played at the Kingspan Stadium on Tuesday 17th March. This game is scheduled to kick off at 3-00pm.
