Never write off the human spirit, this Ophir side have played 13 and won 13 they have rampaged across Ulster and though many had written them & Ken off last season the human spirit prevails. They are a credit to the game and delighted for them. TEAM! ARMAGEDDEN! SKILL! HARD WORK!
Ophir come from behind to win at Cavan and wrap up the league title.
Ophir firsts sponsored by MCW Properties & Biffa Waste travelled to Cavan on Saturday hoping to keep their unbeaten league record intact and to take an unassailable lead in the Kukri Qualifying 4 league.
On a cold afternoon the sticky pitch was made worse just before the start by a heavy hailstorm which swept across Swellan Park and delayed kick-off for several minutes.
Ophir skipper Karl Davis won the toss and elected to start against the elements and from the Cavan kick-off he was adjudged to have knocked on trying to take the catch. Ophir drove Cavan back from the first scrum and won it against the head and the danger was cleared. Cillian Rooney strayed offside and Cavan landed the resulting penalty after seven minutes to go 3-0 ahead. Some fine long range kicking by the Cavan out-half kept Ophir pinned deep in their own half of the pitch for long periods during the first 30 minutes but the tight Ophir defence couldn’t be breached. Ophir gained some field position with strong probing runs by winger Anthony Davis and veteran back-row Neil Gray taking play up to the Cavan 5m line but the ball was turned over and the danger was cleared. Ophir then gave away two penalties in quick succession but luckily for Ophir the Cavan out-half missed both chances to stretch his sides lead. So Ophir went in 3-0 down at halftime with the game still in the balance.
The second half started with blue skies and sunshine and this seemed to brighten up the Ophir team. On 43 minutes Anthony Davis caught an up and under from the Cavan out-half and put in a very useful clearance kick into the Cavan 22 which their winger hacked in to touch. The Ophir lineout which has been a strength all season functioned brilliantly with David Lucas taking a clean catch and the Ophir pack mauled over the line with Neil Gray at the back to score. The conversion narrowly missed. 5-3 to Ophir, game on. The Ophir pack were now on the front foot and from a scrum 30m from the Cavan line, Ophir scrumhalf Karl Davis picked up from the base and skipped through the Cavan defence to score under the posts. David Walker converted. 12-3 to Ophir. Both teams then had a player yellow carded for a bout of fisticuffs. Ophir won a lineout 10m from the Cavan line and set up a maul, the ball was passed to Steven Hastings who gave a great pass inside to out-halfJames Milligan to score. David Walker converted. 19-3 Ophir. Then started a busy period for referee Neil Robertson, he showed Cillian Rooney a yellow card for an off the ball tackle and a red card to the Cavan centre who took exception to it. Ophir then scored two tries in quick succession, Karl Davis dived over to score after the Cavan number 8 dropped the ball at the base of a scrum and winger Steven Hastings scored from a rehearsed training ground move. David Walker missed the first conversion but brilliantly kicked the second from the touchline. 31-3 to Ophir. Cavan had no answer to this Ophir momentum and with 1 minute left to play, veteran back row Neil Gray showed no mercy with a barnstorming run to score the final try under the posts. John-Joe Flood converted to make it 38-3 to Ophir at the final whistle.
The Cavan team offered their congratulations and then the celebrations started as this young Ophir squad had achieved their goal of winning Kukri qualifying league 4.
Ophir are undefeated in their fifteen league games so far this season and with 3 games left the challenge is to go through the league programme undefeated. The way this team is playing, who would bet against it?
OPHIR TEAM – (15-1): D Walker, A Davis, A Davison, C Rooney, S Hastings, J Milligan, K Davis, N Gray, D Lucas, J Murphy, P McCabe,
P Adgey, C Phillips, R Jenkins, JJ Flood.
