Omagh Accies RFC

Omagh travelled to the far side of Donegal to take on Inishowen on a cold bitter January morning.

The two teams took to the field, literally a field with eight flag poles stuck in the ground to form a rectangle to give them some guidance as to where they were. The referee was suitably dressed for the conditions suited out in a pair wellingtons and a southwester.
Omagh players looked at their coaches with disbelief at where they were and took time to get used to the conditions. Inishowen took advantage of the situation and ran through the Omagh defence twice for two quick tries. As there were no posts there were no conversions.

The ground was like a bog so the opportunity for running rugby was limited even with the uncontested scrums. Omagh again found themselves pushed back to their 5 meter before they came to life. Starting with their captain Philip Ewing driving forward, they kept the ball live with short pop passes and close support play working the ball the full length of the field with Taine Lagan finishing off with a try in the corner.
The conditions then deteriorated further with freezing driving rain adding to the mud, but despite this Omagh dug in and were soon rewarded with another try this time Luke Murnaghan finishing off great team first half effort.

The players on both sides were now feeling the effects of the weather and were keen to get going after the break, I am sure they were now the colour of Smurfs under the thick layer of mud.

Omagh started the second half stronger and soon took the lead in the match this time Dylan Thompson looping around the backs to score. Inishowen fought back and a long restart kick pushed them up to Omagh’s line. Spirited defence again by Finn Small on the wing initially kept them out, but with the wind on their backs their momentum forced them over to tie it up at 15 all.
The referee then called the captains together to offer early showers and a draw as hypothermia was definitely a possibility Omagh however declined and wanted the win and played on for the remaining 10 minutes.

With the upper hand Omagh drove forward only to spill the ball just short of the try line. He ball was again thumped up the pith by Innishowen and they chased and harried to drive over and score to take the lead with only three minutes left on the clock.
Omagh did not give in they pushed forward twice through the forwards only to again be held up at the half way.
It looked like Inishowen were going to hold out for the win until Luke Murnaghan popped up on the blind side.
Ball in hand and showing great stamina in the heavy pitch as he glided over the sticky surface running through and around the entire Inishowen team to score on the last play of the match and even it up 20 points each.
Omagh were without any subs after the first 10 minutes and all the players gave everything in this game. A smashing effort by everyone who played through the pain, rain and mud and to finish in style.