Derry secured their AIL status in the penultimate game of the season with a hard-fought win against Bruff at home. After a very inconsistent campaign, the most important thing to take away from the season is that they survived the drop. If Derry had picked up some momentum during the season, they could have finished much higher as there wasn’t much of a gulf in class in all of the sides in the league. There was a real lack of consistency in the second half of the season with Derry failing to rack up more than two wins in a row at any stage. The squad and coaching staff have time to plan and rebuild ahead of another tough season and with the experience and youth within their ranks, they have what it takes to get to that next level. The players will need to be at the top of their game and hungry for success not just at the start of the season, but right from the start of pre-season in order lay foundations for a season of success. The green and black will be looking to make Judges Road a fortress once again.

CDRFC 2nd XV
- Provincial League Division 3: WINNERS

The second team had a fantastic season winning the league title and only losing once on the way, finishing the season in red hot form winning ten on the bounce. In one of those games, they even managed to put 74 points past Belfast Harlequins to make it a miserable trip back up to the capital that not even a few cans of Harp could help. Something stronger for the Harlequins would have been necessary. The second XV will be going in to next season with their tails wagging and confident that they can really take the league by storm. After a few Heineken’s, some of the lads had their sights set on the Heineken Champions Cup, and why not? A European escapade could be calling for some of the lads, even a trip to Japan… A r*cking fantastic campaign!

CDRFC 3rd XV
- Regional West: Runner’s Up
- Game on Regional west: WINNERS
- Butler Shield: WINNERS

A consistent display of champagne performances earned the three’s a cup triumph this season by polishing off Ballymena 41-0 in the final to lift the cup. To do it in such emphatic fashion was commendable. In the Regional West league, the 3's finished 2nd, just missing out to reach the playoff’s. Nevertheless, their determination to improve and fight right to the end of the season saw them win the leagues ‘best of the rest’. With a little more dedication and some new young talent, the best team in the club could earn some more silverware in their next campaign.

CDRFC Ladies 1st XV
- Ulster Women’s Championship: 3rd
- Women’s Junior Cup: Runner’s Up

The ladies team were fantastic this season, especially in the cup where they narrowly lost 29-17 to Malone. A great achievement for them all, maybe they can go one step further next year? Ballynahinch, Omagh and Dungannon were left in their wake so maybe revenge against Malone awaits next season. In the league, the Ladies managed to finish a very commendable third, despite there being a 20-point gap between them and winners Malone. Next year, they will be looking to apply more pressure and really push for the title and cup double.

CDRFC U18’s
- U18 League: 3rd
- U18 Cup: Semi-Final of U18 Cup

The under 18’s enjoyed a successful campaign finishing in 3rd place, 4 points off top spot. They also had a successful cup run, coming up short in the final against Belfast Met. With the U18’s undoubtably increasing their fanbase and becoming one of the most popular City of Derry RFC teams, next season they will be hoping to push on and get their hands on some silverware. However, there will be a serious reshuffle with a handful of pivotal players moving on to senior rugby.

CDRFC U16’s
- U16 League: 5th
- U16 Cup: Semi-Final of U16 Plate

The under 16’s ended their season in the top half of the table. The men in green and black were undefeated in the month of February, and carried this form into March with 5 wins on the bounce, even reaching the semi-final of the plate competition. If the lads hit the ground running in pre-season they will be looking to push on and finish nearer the summit of the table next season.

CDRFC U14’s
- U14 League: 7th

The under 14’s finished near the foot of the table this season and will be disappointed due to the amount of talent at their disposal. They only managed to win back to back games once throughout their campaign1 and will be frustrated at the lack of consistency during their campaign. However, the squad will be hoping to have a more successful season next time out with a summer turnaround needed. With players going up the youth rugby ladder, they will be hoping that their replacements can help them move up a gear.

CDRFC Mini’s
Mini rugby remains a huge success and continues to do a good job providing a fun introduction to the sport. Catered for children from P3 to 1st year of secondary school, there is large fixture list of matches both home and away and training/friendly matches to ensure that rugby is constantly played and development and fun is always improving throughout the season.

CDRFC Girls
For the first time in the club’s history, City of Derry RFC have a girls rugby team that has started playing competitive matches and playing in various blitz tournaments. With membership increasing over time, all eyes will turn to the start of next season to continue promoting girls rugby and getting even more fixtures organised.

CDRFC U20’s
Throughout the year, the U20’s played all their matches showing some promising rugby for a team that rarely trains together as a team, and is made up of players from various City of Derry RFC teams, helping to explore new partnerships and find some potential talent from the younger ones coming through.

CDRFC 4th XV
It's fantastic news that we have enough people buying into the club and looking to play rugby, meaning that we can have a full playing squad of 60+ at senior level. The newly established 4th team is aimed at those who struggle to get a game on a Saturday due to work or other events, for those looking for a few social rugby games during the year and for anyone who fancies a run out on a Wednesday evening. Next year this will continue to expand with more matches being organised.

End of season report by Simon Greenwood.

We would like to offer our sincere thanks to all our sponsors who’ve supported City of Derry RFC throughout the season, in particularly our sponsors MiniLadd, Gregg Mitchell Motors, McGinnis Group, Omega, Fleming Steel, Fleming Agriculture, Donnelly Group, Nuprint, O’Neills, McDonalds, Best Western White Horse and Sports Health and Nutrition. Without the support of local people and companies, running a club would be a hell of a lot harder. We would also like to thank Foyle College for what has been a great and exciting partnership with a local rugby playing school. Most importantly, we want to thank all of you, the supporters and fans that will always bleed green and black.

That’s it for another year and with some off-season planning and training, we aim to come back bigger, stronger and even more professional in the next season.

Will you be part of it? Anyone wishing to join the club, either as a player, coach or volunteer, get in touch with us through our Website, Facebook or Twitter; Head Coach Paul O’Kane (p.okane@yahoo.co.uk) or Club Secretary Billy Kyle (billykyle61@hotmail.co.uk).