Digital/Electronic platform. Have we the expertise within club volunteers to raise profile and increase the exposure of our club to the wider community.

Without volunteers we do not have a rugby club. It is equipping these volunteers with the skills and knowledge to sustain the future of Domestic Club rugby in Ulster and Ireland. Challenges have been thrown down to the amateur game on the island of Ireland with the recent proposals to change the All Ireland League.

Are you willing to give up some of your time to help out with your local rugby club. The more people we have involved the less the workload that is placed on these volunteers who are passionately committed to securing a future for the amateur club game.

The Ulster Premiership continues this weekend with six matches in Round 2.

Can Ballynahinch make it two wins from two at Ballymena as they go in search of the Stevenson Shield after defeating holders City of Armagh in round 1. Banbridge will want to reverse their defeat away to Queens at the Dub last Saturday in the First Trust Senior Cup when the two teams meet in the league once again at the same venue. For City of Armagh and Malone their focus is building momentum towards their opening AIL game on the 6th October.

We have two Ulster derbies in Div 2 with a Tyrone derby involving Dungannon playing neighbours Omagh at Stevenson Park and Rainey OB hosting City of Derry in a County Londonderry derby at Hatrick Park in Magherafelt. Last season Omagh surprised Dungannon at the Thomas Mellon Playing fields winning 22 – 15 on the 30.12.17. Rainey OB defeated City of Derry 71 – 0 at Hatrick Park on the 6.1.18. Both Bangor and Belfast Harlequins will be looking a win at Upritchard Park on Sat with both teams having no game on the 15th September with the AIL league commencing for the Section 2 teams on the 29th September.

The 1st round of the Millar McCall Wylie Junior Cup will take place this weekend with six matches down for decision. The standout match is the game between Dromore and Enniskillen at Barban Hill. Dromore shocked title contenders Instonians at home on the 25th August defeating them 16 – 5. Their round 2 league game at Coleraine was postponed last weekend. Enniskillen after losing 23 – 13 to Ballyclare on the opening weekend travelled to the Tom Simms Memorial Grounds to play Carrickfergus in round 2. Despite going behind 19 – 0 to three tries scored by Carrickfergus, Enniskillen bounced back through their forwards to score three tries of their own to salvage a 19 – 19 draw despite finishing the game with 13 players. Two teams with strong forward units that should make for an interesting contest.

The commencement of the Celtic Cup this weekend involving the Ulster A team in fixtures between now and the 12/13th October will challenge the playing resources of the five Ulster teams competing in Div 1B this season. Ulster players will be allocated to Ballynahinch, Banbridge, Malone and Ballymena with City of Armagh the exception. How will the Ulster teams compete in the opening rounds of the AIL. Will the club players match up to the Leinster and Connacht teams in this league who will be in the same position during rounds 1 and 2 and possibly round 3 if provincial coaches decide to rest players after the Celtic Cup campaign. All very interesting.

Just a note that Ulster Rugby have appointed new CCRO’S after completing their interview process. I understand 26/30 are in place. The key to making this programme work will be the relationship between the clubs and the CCRO’s. We all know that there are Schools that have no rugby programme in place most notably in the Greater Belfast area where reliance has been on the Grammar Schools supplying players to the clubs. That is a process that is not working and needs the CCRO’s to target the non playing communities and schools. The key is the appointments put in place by clubs to build that working relationship with the CCRO’s. The clubs contribute 50% of the costs with Ulster Rugby providing the other 50%. We have to make sure the relationship between Schools and Club Youth teams continues to be developed with the CCRO’s playing a key role.

RESULTS/TEAMS/POINT SCORERS SATURDAY 1st SEPT 2018

FIRST TRUST SENIOR CUP 1ST RD

City of Armagh 50 Bangor 14

City of Armagh team: 1. Daryl Morton, 2. Andrew Smyth, 3. Philip Fletcher, 4. Peter Starrett, 5. James Hanna, 6. James Kennedy, 7. Gareth McNeice, 8. Robert Whitten, 9. Gerard Treanor, 10. Harry Boyd, 11. Shea O’Brien, 12. Evin Crummie, 13. John Faloon, 14. Andrew Willis, 15. Chris Cousins, 16. Johnny Morton, 17. Eoin O’Hagan, 18. Neil Faloon, 19. James Morton, 20. Harry Doyle.

Points scorers: Andrew Willis 2 x tries, Gareth McNeice, Andrew Winder, Gerard Treanor, Jonathan Morton, Chris Cousins and Harry Doyle 1 x try each. Harry Boyd 5 x cons.

Bangor team: 1. Charlie Clegg, 2. Andrew Shaw, 3. Orran McIImurray, 4. Dave Caughey, 5. Lewis Stevenson, 6. Craig Burton, 7. James Stewart, 8. Mike Weir, 9. Lewis Bret, 10. Oscar Randall, 11. Declan Maguire, 12. Desi Fusco, 13. Adam Alexander, 14. Adam McCusker, 15. Ben Webb, 16. Michael Ferguson, 17. Jamie Mendez, 18. Thomas Boyd, 19. Matt Nesbitt, 20. Gareth Wright.

Bangor points s corers: Declan Maguire , James Stewart 1 x try each. Declan Maguire 2 x cons.

Dungannon 18 Ballymena 22

Dungannon team: 1. Ross Stewart, 2. Daniel Maxwell, 3. Glen Sinnamon, 4. Peter Doran, 5. Guilhem Lopez, 6. Stephen Todd, 7. David Leyburn, 8. Alex Gormley, 9. Jack Reavy, 10. Conor McGeough, 11. Bradley Mulholland, 12. Lucca Avelli, 13. Mervyn Brown, 14. Matthew Montgomery, 16. Sean O’Hagan, 17. Daniel Mikolajcryk, 18. Mark Riddell, 19. John Buckley, 20. Conor Milnes.

Points s corers: Bradley Mulholland 2 x tries, Lucca Avelli 2 x pens and 1 xcon.

Ballymena team: 1. Nacho Clandero Crespo, 2. Griffin Philipson, 3. Chris Cundell, 4. Connor White, 5. David Whann, 6. Willie McKay, 7. Matthew Dick, 8. Stephen Mulholland, 9. Glenn Baillie, 10. Steven Shaw, 11. Mark Thompson, 12. Sam Millar, 13. James Beattie, 14. Jonny McMullan, 15. Scott Willoughby, 16. James Taggart, 17. Josh Bill, 18 Jack Bolger, 19. Daryl Montgomery, 20. Jonny Rossborough.

Points s corers: Glenn Baillie 2 x tries, Stephen Mulholland 1 x try, Sam Millar 2 x cons and 1 x pen.

Malone 29 Belfast Harlequins 24

Malone team: 1. Lee Barlow, 2. Dan Kerr, 3. Philip Eadie, 4. Michael Shiels, 5. Tom Patton, 6. Stuart Doddington, 7. Ross Todd (Capt), 8. Ryan Clarke, 9. Conor Spence, 10. Callum Smith, 11. Connor Scollan, 12. Nathan Brown, 13. Josh Pentland, 14. Jonny Betts, 15. Jack Milligan, 16. Scott Finlay, 17. Ben Halliday, 18. Matty Hadden, 19. Shane Kelly, 20 N/K

Points scorers: Stuart Doddington, Ryan Clarke, Callum Smith, Shane Kelly and Michael Shiels 1 x try each, Callum Smith 2 x cons.

Belfast Harlequins team: 1. James Harrison, 2. Saul Herdman, 3. Mark McGrath, 4. Danny Annett, 5. Callum Leckey, 6. Jaz Andress, 7. Matthew Borne, 8. Ben Alexander, 9. Malcolm Corry, 10. Timmy Emmerson, 11. Richie McKee, 12. Paul Kerr, 13. Mark Gribben, 14. James McConnell, 15. Mark Glover, 16. Charlie Sairgson, 17. Daryl Marshall, 18. Cameron Kelly, 19. Connor Young, 20. Kyle Adams.

Points s corers: Malcolm Corry, Kyle Adams, Cameron Kelly 1 x try each. Mark Gribben 3 x cons and 1 x pen.

Queens University 19 Banbridge 7

Queens Uni team: 1. Andrew Weir, 2. David Swann, 3. Andrew Clingan, 4. David Whitten (Capt), 5. Stuart Evans, 6. James Catterson, 7. Tyler Arnold, 8. Gary Dillon, 9. Conor McAuley, 11. Mark Keane, 12, Curtis Dundas, 13. Johnny Milliken, 14. Ali Burke, 15. Matthew Keane, 16. Andrew McGrath, 17. James Longwell, 18. Matthew McSorley, 19. Jonny Black, 20 Matthew Pentland.

Points scorers: David Whitten, Ali Burke, James Longwell 1 x try each. Richie McMaster 2 x cons

Banbridge: 1. Stuart Cromie, 2. Jonny Weir, 3. Ross Haughey, 4. Chris Allen, 5. Matthew Laird, 6. Mike Bentley, 7. Ethan Harbinson, 8. Stephen Irvine, 9. Niall Armstrong, 10. Aaron Kennedy, 11. Conor Field, 12. Ben Carson, 13. Andrew Morrison, 14. John Porter, 15. Adam Doherty, 16. L Geddis, 17. Nathan Moore, 18. Ryan Hughes, 19. Gareth Hutton, 20 Jordan McKibben.

Points scorers: Stephen Irvine 1 x try, Aaron Kennedy 1 x con

PREMIERSHIP UPDATE

BALLYNAHINCH

Talking to Harry McAleese - Ballynahinch Chairman playing committee/ Director of Rugby who has taken over from Ronnie Duncan. Michael Preston will continue as 1st xv Manager with Mark McDowell and Andy Glenn taking over the seconds. The ever popular Ian Donnan is taking a break at this time from his duties looking after the seconds. After 30 years he deserves to be able to take time out. Everybody at Ballynahinch expects Ian to be returning in the near future. The club have made few additions to their playing squad in the close season. Notable signings include Josh Jordan and Bradley Luney. Former 1st xv player Ross Adair has returned to the club after stints with Ulster and Jersey. Prop Zac Cinnamond has returned to England. Coach Brian McLaughlin is looking to his club squad to meet the challenge of playing their opening AIL league games in the absence of their Ulster players. They will continue their preparations this weekend when they travel to Eaton Park to play Ballymena. Callum McLaughlin is following return to play protocols after suffering an injury against City of Armagh in the opening league match.

One noticeable absentee on the touchlines at Ballynahinch this season will be former DoR Ronnie Duncan who is taking time out due to business commitments. Like Ian Donnan both men have been great servants to Ballynahinch rugby club.

BALLYMENA

There has been a shake up in the committees at Ballymena during the off season with Peter Crabbe taking over as chairman with several new faces brought in to bolster the Corporate and Financial side of the club going forward with plans to enhance the clubs infrastructure in the coming seasons. Head coach Andy Graham has welcomed the increasing numbers playing rugby with the Mini and Youth structures feeding players through into the Adult side of the club. The long standing relationship between the club and Ballymena Academy and Cambridge House continues to feed players into Ballymena. With the departure of key players in the last two seasons there is a need to add quality and depth to the current playing squad. Playing wise the coach is expecting it to be a tough season for the 1st xv. The key is avoiding injuries and getting the best players out to represent the club each week. The club have strength in numbers but need that bit of extra quality for Section 1 of the AIL. The gulf in depth between the development of players at Schools and Youth level is an area that needs to be addressed. As Andy Graham put it there is a lot of raw potential coming through from the Youth. It is Schools and Youth players working together to raise their game and become stronger and fitter. Under 20s rugby has helped the transition of young players into Adult rugby. What is also helping is that young players want to play for their local rugby club. Players are not willing to travel and want to play with their mates they grew up with. One point to note is that Ballymena have put in a 5th team into the league this season.

Looking at the current playing squad Ballymena will be looking to experienced backs Glenn Baillie, James Beattie, Timothy Small, Jonny Rossborough, Daryl Montgomery, Alan Smyth, Jordan Foster and Rodger McBurney along with forwards Nacho Clandero Crespo, James Taggart, Chris Cundell, Conor Smyth, David Whann, Mark Foster, Willie McKay, James Gallagher, Dominic Gallagher and Stephen Mulholland to provide the spine to their team. There are potential young backs coming through including Matthew Norris, Dean Reynolds, James Boville, Sam Millar and Steven Shaw along with forwards Griffin Philipson, Connor White, Matthew Dick, Joe Thompson, Ryan Matheison, Jack Bolger, Donovan Woulaham, Houston Bonner, Josh Bill and JJ McKee.

New additions to the 1st xv squad including Scott Willoughby, Mark Thompson, Jack Lewis, Jack Fleming and Jonny McMullan will add quality to the backline. The release of Ulster players Robert Balacoune, Michael Stronge, Bruce Houston, Azur Allinson and Marcus Rea will be key to the team performing well in Div 1B.

As Andy Graham put it – the shape of rugby is changing. Ballymena are changing to meet the challenges. It will take a while to happen.

CITY OF ARMAGH

As Assistant coach Chris Parker put it. When it mattered last season the players produced the performances. On occasions it was back to the wall stuff. When the team made the playoffs it was all about focusing on the two games and fighting for everything. Despite the drama it was enjoyable to be a part off. For the players this season it is a step up playing in Div 1B of the AIL. This time of the season teams are having to deal with a lot of players away on holidays and work experience. Young out half Cormac Fox had another summer season playing in NZ. The absence of players provides opportunities with former Portora player Joshua Kennedy making an impact in the back row in the early games. The player was injured in the Junior Cup Final and missed the second half of the season. Other players making an impact have been former under 18 players Shea O’Brien and Evin Crummie. Another example is with Chris Cousins, Harry Boyd and Cormac Fox challenging for the out half jersey. Gerard Treanor has come in from Queens and impressed in the scrum half position. He will challenge Harry Doyle for the scrum half position with TC Campbell joining Mullingar as their player coach. Another former Portora pupil is prop Jonathan Clarke who is looking to establish himself in the 1st xv squad. He will have competition for the tight head position with Paul Mullan, Philip Fletcher and Simon Carlisle in contention. Several players have been in Canada this summer including Kyle Faloon, Robbie Faloon and Paul Mullan. Several players are unavailable this weekend including Harry Doyle, Josh McKinley, Ryan Purvis, Simon Carlisle, Philip Matthews, Ollie Millar, Barry Finn and Shane McKeever. Injury rules out Gareth McNeice for 2/3 weeks. The new additions to the playing squad include former Queens Captain Nigel Simpson who gained some game time against Bangor last Saturday. Portadown hooker Peter Lamb has trained well and missed game last Saturday after playing against Carrickfergus in the Conference league.

With 12 players leaving the Royal School – eight of them are heading to University in England. The remaining four are staying in NI. Jack Treanor Armagh Royal Captain has been involved with the Ulster under 19 team along with Ryan O’Neill. Another Morton impressing in pre season is back row forward Ryan who has been playing for the second xv. As Chris Parker put it the squad has 2/3 players challenging for each position on the 1st xv.

MALONE

Paddy Armstrong is into his 4th season at Malone. Having ‘steadied the ship’ after the club were relegated from Div 1B - 3 years ago – Malone won Div 2A last season to retake their place in Div 1B this season. Paddy Armstrong puts the success of the club down to a lot of people working very hard at the Club. He singles out Michael Kearney and Patrick ‘Chippy’ Baird for special mention as they have been the driving force at the club to keep the club moving forward. As a coach you need that bit of luck and the bounce of the ball. The team got that last season in their pursuit of promotion. He puts the success of the team down to the players and their approach to their rugby. For this season the focus for the coaches and players will be on the first block of AIL games. The attitude at Malone is to get on with it. The club are aware this season will be a big step up for everybody involved at the club. It is the ‘Malone men’ involved in the team and committees who will continue to drive the club forward.

The game against City of Armagh will see the coaches rotating the team selection. Injuries continue to rule out Dave Cave and Rory Campbell. Back row forward Phil Lucas continues his rehab after ACL surgery.

DUNGANNON

It is never easy for a Head coach this early in the new season with holidays and other players unavailable. Last weekend Andy Hughes discovered the club had 25/30 players unavailable that impacted on the 1sts/2nds and 3rd xv. Despite this situation the 1st xv only came up just short losing 22 – 18 at home to Ballymena in the First Trust Senior Cup. The seconds made the journey to Magherfelt and defeated Rainey OB seconds. What is noticeable is the relationship developed between Friends School and Dungannon rugby club. Three former players Ben McCaughey, Ross Stewart and Bradley Mulholland have joined up at Stevenson Park. Ross Stewart has impressed playing in the front row while Bradley Mulholland scored two tries against Ballymena. There was disappointment when scrum half John Russell picked up an injury against Belfast Harlequins in their opening league match. It has opened up opportunities for Jack Ravey who has trained hard pre season and new signing Conor Milnes to push for the number 9 jersey. Out half Conor McGeough picked up an injury in the opening minutes against Ballymena and had to leave the pitch. With McGeough ruled out his replacement John Buckley is away on holidays. Two recent additions to the playing squad – Guilhem Lopez in the second row and Lucca Avelli at centre have impressed. Young hooker Daniel Mikolajgryl who played in the Nutty Krust Final two seasons ago for Dungannon has also impressed in pre season. Former Captain James McMahon continues to make progress with his rehab. He is expected to be available for selection come Nov/Dec. New back row forward Alex Gormley has impressed since joining from Enniskillen. He is a no frills player who gets on with his work on the pitch. Prop James Gamble had been away travelling and turned out for the seconds last Saturday.

For the Tyrone derby with Omagh at Stevenson Park on Saturday Lewis McCrabbe, Ross McCaughey, Peter Doran and John Buckley are unavailable with injury ruling out Conor McGeough, Malcolm Allister and John Russell. The coach is hoping to include Andrew McPhillips in the backs with Lucca Avelli expected to start at out half. The availability of Jonah Mau’u will be dependent on whether he is involved in the Ulster A game against Leinster on Friday night.

OMAGH

For Head coach Phil Marshall the focus for his playing squad is the next three games against Dungannon, City of Armagh and Belfast Harlequins in preparation for their opening AIL games against Ballina, Malahide and Thomond. His coaches Mark Nicholl and Ashley Blair have been working on building competition for places in the 1st and 2nd xv squad. Again examples are in the back row where Adam Longwell, Jack Mitchell, Stuart Allen, Dean Porter, Martin Clyde, Mervyn Edgar and Kaine Holden are competing for starting places. Several players including James Sproule, Scott Barr and Matty Eccles are unavailable for the game at Dungannon on Saturday. Young front row forward Adam Pollock has been ruled out for the season after undergoing knee surgery. Jonny Sproule comes into the second row and will start alongside former Enniskillen player Kaine Holden. Philip Ewing comes on to the bench along with Martin Clyde. Ali Beckett returns to the squad along with Eoin Murnaghan. Winger Neil Brown continues to make progress from a long term injury and is expected to play next week. The players know the coaches are looking for consistency each week. A number of players have come in from the Grammar School and have made an impact on the second xv.

Special mention to Glenn Patterson at Omagh who is standing down after 19 years on committees at the club. As he put it the club needs new members on committee with fresh ideas to take the club forward. Hopefully Omagh can replace Glenn as their PRO.

BANGOR

Despite early season results Bangor rugby club have strengthened their playing squad this season. Additions include Adam Alexander and Oscar Yandell in the backs with Craig Burton returning to add options in the back row. When you look at the Bangor squad they have Philip Whyte, James Leary, Jamie Clegg, Curtis Stewart, James Henley, Jack Cooke and David Bradford to return in the forwards and Mark Widdowson, Davy Charles, Ross McCloskey, Rob Gamble and Ali Lockhart in the backs.

KUKRI ULSTER RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP DIV 1

Ballyclare 32 CIYMS 18

Ballyclare team: 1. Dean Jones, 2. Matthew Coulter, 3. Jonny Black, 4. Ryan Tweed, 5. Grant Bartley (Capt), 6. Aaron Playfair, 7. Gary Weatherup, 8. Paul Robinson, 9. Andy Eastop, 10. Robert Smith, 11. Matthew Johnston, 12. Joel McBride, 13. Robbie Reid, 14. Owen Kirk, 15. Gary Clotworthy, 16. Rory Henderson, 17. Callum Wilson.

Points s corers: Joel McBride 2 x tries, Gary Weatherup and Aaron Playfair 1 x try each. Robert Smith 3 x cons and 2 x pens.

CIYMS team: 1. Gavin Woods, 2. Scott McNarry, 3. Timmy Atcheson, 4. Cory Tipping, 5. Paddy Aiken, 6. Tom McCartney, 7. Patrick Butler, 8. Shane Moffett, 9. Cameron Stewart, 10. John Creighton, 11. Jason Harvey, 12. Matthew Kilgore, 13. Jonny Haldane, 14. Philip McVitty, 15. Peter Raine, 16. Raduua Freddykalo Joe, 17. Stuart Ferguson.

Points scorers: Paddy Butler and Freddykalo Joe 1 x try each. Matthew Kilgore 2 x pens and 1 x con.

Carrickfergus 19 Enniskillen 19

Carrickfergus team: 1. Adam Gibney, 2. Alan Whitley, 3. Paul Greenaway, 4. Chris Rodgers, 5. Stuart Currie, 6. Ryan Gibson, 7. Ross Crymble, 8. Ryan McGonigle. 9. David Moore, 10. David Carse, 11. Brian Alexander, 12. Adam White, 13. Jonny Sherriff, 14. Fionn Mc Cormick, 15. Patrick Neill, 16. Stuart Cheshire, 17. Keith Topping.

Points s corers: David Moore 2 x tries, Fionn McCormick 1 x try. Adam White 2 x cons.

Enniskillen team: 1.Gavin Warrington, 2. Ryan Cathcart (Capt), 3. Richard Beatty, 4. David Buchanan, 5. James Carleton, 6. Jamie Kelly, 7. Gavin Parke, 8. Jack Rutledge, 9. Matthew Dane, 10. Adam Lendrum, 11. P Dickey, 12. Mark O’Shea, 13. James Ferguson, 14 Jarlath Maguire, 15. Paddy McCleery, 16. Alan Ferguson, 17. Reece Barrett.

Points s corers: Jamie Kelly, Jack Rutledge and Gavin Warrington 1 x try each. Adam Lendrum and Paddy McCleery 1 x con each

Coleraine v Dromore – Postponed

Portadown 10 Cooke 24

Portadown team: 1. Mark Henderson, 2. Robbie Reid, 3. Conor Webster, 4. Lee Bicker, 5. Aaron Abraham, 6. Gary Hall (capt), 7. Karim Ahizoun, 8. Stuart Lamb, 9. Craig Woods, 10. Brett Flack, 11. Nick Holt, 12. Matthew Neill, 13. Jonny Holden, 14. Jack Orr, 15. Mark Adamson, 16. Matthew Davidson, 17. Lloyd Gravatt.

Points scorers: Gary Hall and Nick Holt 1 x try each.

Cooke team: 1.Jonathan McClune, 2. Curtis Montgomery, 3. Russell Hunter, 4. Fraser Orr, 5. Matthew Crothers, 6. Matthew Elliott, 7. Ian Anderson, 8. Jonathan Walsh, 9. Ryan Flavelle, 10. Andrew Hanna, 11. Andrew Pollock, 12. Kyle Mitchell (Capt), 13. Michael Cartmill, 14. Jonathan Bauckus, 15. Philip Cartmill, 16. Ross Dunning, 17. Andrew Nelson.

Points s corers: Andrew Pollock, Philip Cartmill, Jonathan McClune and Jonathan Walsh 1 x try each. Andrew Walsh 2 x cons.

Ballymoney 26 Ards 5

Ballymoney team: 1. Matthew Blair, 2. Peter Irvine, 3. Scott Gamble, 4. Danny Platt, 5. Russell Blair, 6. Garvin Bellingham, 7. David Mckeeman, 8. Daniel Ramage, 9. Matthew Steele, 10. John Hyndman, 11. Matthew Bell, 12. Marty Irwin, 13. Andrew Young, 14. Michael Armstrong, 15. Thomas Hunter, 16. Kenny McAneneany, 17. Andrew Stevenson.

Points scorers: Russell Blair, Garvin Bellingham, Martin Irwin and Daniel Ramage 1 x try each. John Hyndman 3 x cons.

Ards team: 1. Andrew Foster (Capt), 2. Paul Hamilton, 3. Paddy Bond, 4. Danny Patton, 5. Ross Torney, 6. Josh McFarland. 7. Onisi Burekama, 8. Graeme Taylor, 9. Alex Hendrickse, 10. Paul Cox, 11. Trevor Devlin, 12. Jamie Cardwell, 13. Taylor Nutt, 14. Adam Coulter, 15. Aaron May, 16. Mattie Kane, 17. John Dowey.

Points scorers: Paul Hamilton 1 x try

Limavady v Clogher Valley Postponed

Randalstown 42 Lurgan 15

Randalstown team: 1. Matthew McBrien, 2. Marty O’Neill, 3. Simon Adams, 4. Dean McCroary, 5. David Millar, 6. Peter Knowles, 7. Ian Hume, 8. David Smith (Capt), 9. Tommy Holland, 10. Martin Connolly, 11. Coby Mason, 12. Ryan O’Dea, 13. Matthew McWhinney, 14. Jack Dempster, 15. Michael Smith, 16. Tony O’Hagan, 17. Scott McClenaghan.

Points scorers: Marty O’Neill, Peter Knowles, Coby Mason, Jack Dempster, David Smith, David Millar 1 x try. Martin Connolly 4 x cons and 1 x pen. Coby Mason 1 x con.

Lurgan team: 1. Ryan Emerson, 2. Marty Follis, 3. Josh Lyness, 4. Richard Shilliday, 5. Daniel Lyness, 6. Lee Allen, 7. Ryan Osbourne, 8. Dean Wilson (Capt), 9. Chris Jenks, 10. Dylan Gill, 11. Richard Hull, 12. Chris Walmsley, 13. Ben McIIwaine, 14. Ryan Mooney, 15. Stephen Nolan, 16. Graham Currie, 17. Jack Wilson.

Points s corers: Ryan Mooney and Jack Wilson 1 x try each. Stephen Nolan 1 x con and 1 x pen.

KUKRI ULSTER RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP/CONF DIV 1

Grosvenor 18 Ballynahinch seconds 32

Instonians 55 City of Armagh seconds 14

Instonians team: 1. Matthew Nelson, 2. Johnny Mooney, 3. Josh Cregan, 4. Tom Matthews, 5. Daryl Smith, 6. Michael Blackwood, 7. Mark Mairs, 8. Robert McGibbon, 9. Paul Marshall, 10. Tim Murphy, 11. Matt Kilpatrick, 12. David Scott (Capt), 13. Paddy Bell, 14. Ross O’Donnell, 15. Colm Cregan, 16. Cameron Barr, 17. Massimo Kiri Kiri.

Points s corers: Mark Mairs and Paddy Bell 2 x tries each, Ross O’Donnell, Colm Cregan, Matthew Nelson, Jonathan Mooney and Michael Blackwood 1 xtry each. Tim Murphy 5 x cons.

KUKRI ULSTER RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP/CONF DIV 2

Banbridge seconds 40 Larne 24

Lisburn 8 Ballymena seconds 27

Lisburn team: 1. Jamie Dickson (Capt), 2. Matt Nelson, 3. Uate Caquea, 4. Gareth Gardiner, 5. James Welling, 7. Kitione Doniniqbau, 8. Andy Barron, 9. Andy Neely, 10. Richard McGregor, 11. Jake Bebington, 12. Craig Hossack, 13. Josh Cardosi, 14. Conor Gascoigne, 15. Craig walsh, 16. Chris Stewart, 17. Andy Hamilton.

Points s corers: Conor Gascoigne 1 x try, Richard McGregor1 x pen

Malone seconds 11 Academy 15

Malone seconds: 1. Gary Crawford, 2. Steve Nicholl, 3. Ali Barnes, 4. Charlie Shannon, 5. Ryan McKay, 6. Max Porter (Capt), 7. Dean Hewitt, 8. Matthew Fisher, 9. Rory Cahoon, 10. Connor Henry, 11. Jack McDowell, 12. Ricky McCullagh, 13. Rory Henry, 14. Chris Halliday, 15. Liam Cosgrove, 16. Andrew Bailey, 17. Chris Tait.

Points scorers:

Academy team: 1.Chris Nash, 2. Adam Martin, 3. Troy Wilson, 4. Brian Cahill, 5. Richard Henderson (capt), 6. Tom Gilpin, 7. Taylor Gillespie, 8. Jamie Watts, 9. David Kenny, 10. Jordan Buchanan, 11. Jamie Wilson, 12. Alan O’Neill, 13. David McCullagh, 14. John Gilkinson, 15. Simon Beattie, 16. Lee Moody, 17. Andy Eggleton.

Points scorers: Chris Nash and Richard Henderson 1 x try each. David Kenny 1 x con and 1 x pen.

UUC 12 Omagh seconds 24

ULSTER RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP

COOKE

Head coach Colin Atkinson has strengthen his forward options with the addition of Ian Moxen from Ballymoney, Fraser Orr Belfast Harlequins and back row forward Luke Tarry along with prop Ross Dunning from Ballynahinch. He also welcomed back Matty Elliott against Portadown at the weekend. The experienced former Malone centre Michael Cartmill has joined his brother Philip in the talented Cooke backline. Despite injuries ruling out the Gourlay brothers Alex and Alan the coaches now have strength in depth at the club with two players competing for each position. The relationship the club has built up with Wellington College has resulted in a number of players joining the club each season. Many quickly establishing themselves on the 1st xv. Another area the club has worked hard on is in developing its own Youth structure. The driving force behind this has been Noel Brown with the club hoping to field an under 18 side this season. Injury has sadly forced prop Liam Bennett to retire. The club are hoping to keep him involved with the 1st xv this season.

Two wins from two have Cooke sitting one point behind leaders Ballyclare in Div 1. The coaches are aware they have a small playing squad. It is all about avoiding injuries and trying to get some consistency into their performances throughout the season.

GROSVENOR

Head coach Robert Ford has been delighted that Peter Lowry has joined the coaching team at Grosvenor this season. In previous seasons the playing squad would have limited the amount of contact work in preseason. With the team promoted to Div 1 it has all been about preparing the squad for their opening league game against CIYMS. Peter Lowry’s focus has been on organisation, structure and improving the teams defence and communication.

The coaches were pleased to pick up five points against CI. What the players have recognised in Div 1 is that the pressure is a lot higher with teams having the ability to score quickly. In the CI match Grosvenor built up an 19 – 0 lead only for CIYMS to draw level 22 – 22 at halftime. Grosvenor did push on in second half to win 36 – 27. Grosvenor had lost the services of Captain and number 8 Andrew Kelly for this opening match due to injury. Both their centres from last season had changed with Matt Johnston joining Ballyclare and Mitchell McComb stepping back from playing rugby. Influential second row Paddy Hamill was unavailable due to work commitments. The coaches are hoping to welcome back Allen McCluggage, Stuart McIIwaine and Andrew Kelly for the Portadown match on the 15th September. One player who made a big impact on his debut was former Grosvenor Grammar centre Josh McConkey who scored two tries against CIYMS.

CLOGHER VALLEY

Talking to David Sharkey. The club have retained all their players from last season with Rodney Bennett and Paul Armstrong returning from Dungannon. The Wilson brothers Ryan and BJ have not retired and will hope to play a part this season. Early season injuries ruled out David Speers, Ross Finlay and Paul Armstrong. Winger Clive Donaldson has got married and due to work commitments is taking a step back from playing rugby. Former Enniskillen Royal Grammar School players Ewan Haire and Reece Smyton have been welcome additions to the playing squad. Dylan Eakin who played for seconds last season made his debut for the 1st xv at out half in the win over Lurgan. Another young player Aaron Dunwoody who only turned 18 years also played for the 1st xv against Lurgan. As David Sharkey pointed out there a lot of young players who are training hard and very keen as the club look to rebuild. The club will be fielding an under 18 team this season after the success of their under 16 team last season.

ARDS

Head coach John West knows his playing squad have to bounce back from two opening league defeats away to Limavady and Ballymoney. Both these teams are expected to be in the promotion mix come the end of the season. He felt his forwards have been competitive with the Limavady backline doing all the damage. John would say the Limavady team is better than the Grosvenor team that was undefeated last season. The Ards backline is lacking the experience of Stuart Paul who is out injured and Scott young who has retired. The inclusion of the experienced Mark Banford will be crucial in the weeks ahead. The coach has also been rotating his squad as he welcomed back Mattie Kane, Mark McLean, Paul Cox, and Mark Banford.

FIRST TRUST SENIOR CUP QUARTER FINAL DRAW

Ballymena v Malone

City of Derry v Ballynahinch

Rainey OB v Queens University

City of Armagh v Omagh

Matches to take place on or before 15th September 2018

ALL IRELAND JUNIOR CUP 1st ROUND

Wicklow (Leinster) v Kilfeacle (Munster)

Connemara (Connacht) v Ballyclare (Ulster)

Richmond (Munster) v Enniscorthy (Leinster)

CIYMS (Ulster) v Monivea (Connacht)

Instonians (Ulster) v Dundalk (Leinster)

Waterpark (Munster) v Carrickfergus (Ulster)

Ashbourne (Leinster) v Westport (Connacht)

Creggs (Connacht) v Clonmel (Munster)

Matches to be played Saturday 27th October 2018

SONI ULSTER RUGBY PREMIERSHIP DIV 1

Ballymena v Ballynahinch

City of Armagh v Malone

Queens University v Banbridge

SONI ULSTER RUGBY PREMIERSHIP DIV 2

Bangor v Belfast Harlequins

Dungannon v Omagh

Rainey OB v City of Derry

MILLAR McCALL WYLIE JUNIOR CUP 1st RD

Coleraine v Cooke

Dromore v Enniskillen

Limavady v Banbridge seconds

Lisburn v City of Armagh seconds

Omagh seconds v Ballymoney

Portadown v Ballymena seconds

Following teams received a Bye: Ards, Ballyclare, Ballynahinch seconds, Carrickfergus, Clogher Valley, Grosvenor, Instonians, Larne, Malone seconds, Randalstown.

Following teams did not enter Junior Cup: CIYMS, Academy, Lurgan and UUC.

KUKRI ULSTER RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP DIV 3

BHSFP V Donaghadee

Monaghan v Civil Service

Newry v Cavan

PSNI v Holywood

Strabane v Letterkenny

Virginia v Ophir

Enjoy your rugby this weekend. As you are aware I am sending the preview to club secretaries to circulate to their members. If you are not included on this mailing system please forward your details to me and I will forward you a copy. I can be contacted at 07849071514 or e mail ga_millar@hotmail.com.

George