The 2nds travelled to Belmont on Saturday to face CI 2nds in a league and plate ‘double header,’ to help clear the backlog of fixtures now building up right across the country because of the poor weather.
The game got underway in very mild, still conditions with both sides keen to keep the ball in hand.
11 minutes into the game and CI got the first points on the board with a well struck penalty. Having a kicker in the side, soon turned out to be the main difference between the two sides.
Ards regrouped and on 14 minutes, big Bale Tabaiwalu and pack leader, crashed over for Ards 1st unconverted try, just to the right of the uprights.
CI came back and on 19 minutes landed another successful penalty.
Not to be outdone, Ards moved the ball neatly though the hands out to the right wing for Trevor Devlin to scamper down the touchline and score Ards 2nd try, just to the right of the sticks, but again the conversion was missed.
Both teams fought hard up front to gain the upper hand, but it was to be Ards day as they won the battle in the set piece with some really solid scrummaging.
On the blow of halftime, CI eventually breached the Ards defence and scored an unconverted try, to lead 11 – 10 at the break.
Ards had blown a couple of scoring opportunities with some wayward passing when they had a 3-on-1, with the opposition try line beckoning and some accidental offside when they ran into their own players, inside the hosts 5m line at the base of a ruck, but still, they looked like they were more than capable of putting this game to bed.
In the 2nd half, a CI restart dropped short of the 10m line but Tabaiwalu played the ball and stormed up the pitch to within the opposition 22m before being hauled down by some desperate defence. Sadly he took a big knock to the shoulder and had to retire early from the fray. The loss of the big ball carrier was to prove crucial for the remainder of the game.
CI were quickly into their stride and landed their 3rd penalty, quickly followed by a converted try on 48 minutes then another unconverted try on 62 minutes.
Ards fought on and thought they had scored another 2 tries of their own in quick succession through Ross Torney and ‘Kaz’ Kasarate, but both were deemed to have been held up, so the game played on.
By now Ards looked to be dead and buried, but continued on bravely despite losing a 2nd big talisman, when Torney was helped from the pitch with a leg injury, and scored their 3rd unconverted try through Chris McClure in the centre.
Another unconverted CI try late in the 2nd half seemed to have secured the spoils for the home side, but amazingly Ards had other ideas.
A huge forwards drive in stoppage time, enabled Matty Weir to crash over the whitewash for Ards 4th try for McClure to convert with a dropkick, before Kasarate nipped in to score the visitors 5th, but unconverted try, even deeper into added on time.

Eventually the final whistle sounded to end this epic battle between these two well matched sides with CI running out much relieved and 31 – 27 victors on the day.
A good game to watch from a neutrals perspective, but a frustrating day from an Ards one as this was another game that was allowed to slip through the fingers of an Ards team.
Thanks are extended to the hosts CI, for a very entertaining game, the match official and the Ards travelling support on the day.