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Friends School Lisburn Med and Omagh Academy Med replay finishes in another Draw
Friends travelled to Omagh Academy on Saturday to replay the 2nd round fixture of the Northern Bank Medallion Shield after last weeks exciting match which ended in a 3 all draw.
The pitches at Omagh suited the larger home side as it was very heavy under foot, perfect for a forward orientated game which Omagh would tend to play.
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Friends had trained hard during the week to counter balance this advantage and it was to show during the opening of the game with the visitors repelling all the home side could throw at them but eventually Omagh’s strenght was to pay off with a good try in the end of the first quarter, conversion was missed but this was to be the story of the day with the soft pitch.
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Both sides played frantically and neither side made mistakes in their handling, their skill levels showing and making for a very entertaining game to watch no matter which team you were there to support.
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Omagh had the better part of possession in the first half and credit must go to Friends who spent most of the half defending and apart from the first try Omagh never troubled the visitors line again in the half.
After the half time talk, Friends came out with the intent to control the game and this showed with their lines of running and support play, again they worked well at the breakdown and were able to turn over ball but as Friends did in the first half Omagh did in this half and defended well, however pressure was to tell on Omagh and soon Friend’s lock Gareth Hill went over the line to score after forwards pressure, again like the first half Omagh try , Friends conversion was missed making the score 5 – 5.
Friends had the opportunity to score soon after this with a penalty kick to the corner but the wrong Lineout option saw them fail to take advantage of their pitch position.
With 5 minutes to go Omagh recovered possession and held onto the ball, this was the same tactic as last weeks encounter but again as last week Friend’s defence stood strong and they tackled the Omagh forwards time after time until forcing a turnover and the end of the game.
This was an exciting game to watch, played at pace and good skills from both sides. All the players played their part and it is hoped this will carry on to the next replay at a neutral venue to be appointed at the start of the week. The winners go on to the 3rd round of the Medallion Shield away against Belfast High School and the losers go into the first round of the Medallion Trophy home against Lurgan College
(Report Submitted by Friends School)
