U16s set high standard against Letterkenny
Portadown 22 Letterkenny 0
Portadown U16s showed exactly what they are capable of as they hosted Letterkenny today in the first round of the cup. Straight from the kick off Sam Neill secured a difficult high ball, allowing the pack to apply pressure that never let off. Quick hands from scum half Darren Campbell at an early and well dominated scrum by Portadown, allowed the backs to put the ball through the hands and force their way into the Letterkenny half. With both sides being very evenly matched, the game moved from one half to the other, with neither team being able to break through. Good attacking rugby saw Letterkenny pressure the Portadown try line on several occasions, but solid defence and great work around the rucks by Gareth Gardiner, Jack Murphy and Michael Guilfoyle secured plenty of turnover ball for the Blues, allowing Portadown to work back into the Letterkenny half. More hard work from the forwards ensured Portadown kept possession allowing their captain, Sam Allen, to drive through two defenders and score a well-earned try. Confident Kicking from Matty Neill saw the conversion float over with little difficulty. A weak lineout from Portadown was balanced by great work from Brett Flack and Nathen Dawson who defended with little regard for themselves. Two big tackles from Stuart Rainey and another by Nathan Meredith, kept Letterkenny under pressure and after several good runs from fullback Jack Bateman, the Blues celebrated again as Andrew Hollywood broke through the line to score another hard earned try in the corner. Constant pressure from Peter Stevenson, Caolan McNally and Craig Chambers kept Letterkenny on the back foot until Matty Neill got his name on the score board again with a well-placed penalty kick and after some sustained pressure from Letterkenny, Portadown got back into the opposition 22 where number 8 Nathan Meredith picked up the ball from the back of the scrum to drag a defender over the line for a try. The conversion was secured again by Matty Neill and with the final whistle, Portadown celebrated a well-earned win against a strong well-disciplined Letterkenny.
