Page 91 - Bellfort Magazine Issue 8
P. 91

BALLYMENA RUGBY CLUB
                                                                                      CUP WINNING SUCCESS
                                                                                 No  less  than  ten  players  from
                                                                                 Dunclug College were involved in
                                                                                 the  cup  winning  success  enjoyed
                                                                                 by  Ballymena  Rugby  Club  in  the
                                                                                 Under 14 Ulster Carpets competi-
                                                                                 tion.













           ULSTER HIGH SCHOOLS’ CUP          resulting in a win in the first game
         The  school  team  had  a  tremen-  after some manful defending and
         dous  run  in  the  Under  14  Ulster   tackling to keep a much stronger
         Schools’  competition  this  year,   pack  of  forwards  at  bay,  before
         safely  negotiating  the  qualifying   losing the second game, when the
         round  for  the  North-East  region   energy  levels’  of  the  players  in- Jack  French  from  Year  10  cap-
                                                          volved  were  running  tained  the  team  in  the  31-22  win
                                                          close  to  empty  after  against Virginia in the final played
                                                          previous exertions.    at Kingspan Stadium, the home of
                                                                                 Ulster rugby. Sam Sempey, Callum
                                                                                 Mitchell, Jack Gaston (all pictured
                                                             YEAR 8 RUGBY
                                                                                 below) and Jamie Witherspoon all
                                                          The Year 8 team had    featured prominently in the team
                                                          the  experience  of    win, with Timmy Carson and Craig
                                                          playing  in  a  ‘blitz’   Houston from Year 9 also playing
                                                          tournament  at  Col-   their part on the day. Max Brace-
                                                          eraine  RFC  coming    well and Josh  Graham, both also
         by  securing  wins  against  Slemish
                                             up  against  opposition  from  Col-  from Year 9, were part of the win-
         College,  North  Coast  Integrated
                                             eraine  Grammar  School,  North-    ning squad
         College  and  Ballymoney  High
                                             Coast Integrated College and Col-
         School,  only  suffering  a  narrow
                                             eraine  High  School.  All  the  boys
         defeat  against  Limavady  High
                                             enjoyed  their  first  taste  of  com-
         School on the way to the final of
                                             petitive   action   and     Joshua
         the competition itself.
                                             McClung  lead  by  example  in  his
         The final was staged at Banbridge  role  as  team  captain.  Calum
         Rugby  Club  with  nine  schools  French also tackled strongly.
         throughout  the  Province  coming
         together for the occasion. Despite
         fielding a weakened team on the
         day,  the  team  gave  a  good  ac-
         count  of  themselves  against
         Rathfriland  and  Coliste  Ailigh
         (Letterkenny)  in  the  pool  stages,                                     Sam Sempey, Callum Mitchell & Jack
         but failed to progress to the semi-                                       Gaston (pictured above) in the home
         finals.  Consolation  games  were                                         changing room belonging to Ulster
         staged  against  Breda  Academy
         and  Loreto  Milford  respectively,
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