Banbridge Rugby Club - Northern Ireland

Bann spent the first 10 minutes of the match in their own "22" but soaked up the early pressure with resolute defence. A series of penalties had kept Bann deep in their own half and some hard work was needed to break out, but eventually a 40 metre charge from Kasper Kruzyki got Bann into a scoring position. A lineout followed by a maul allowed captain Jonny McCreery to force his way over the line and record the first points of the game.

Bann now had their best period of the first half and scored their second try after several phases set the backs free to move the ball wide. With the Ballyclare defence stretched lock Kyle McConnell showed an impressive turn of speed to touch down in the corner. A third try followed soon after, the backs again showing good handling skills to move the ball beyond the visitors' defence, with Ryan Graham finishing well.

The second half saw Ballyclare start strongly and Bann again conceded several penalties leading to a yellow card and the home side down to 14 players. Ballyclare kicked a penalty to the corner five metres from the Bann line and scored from the resulting maul, leaving the score 15-7 in Bann's favour.

The home team always looked dangerous when the backs got the ball but the penalty count was disrupting their flow and left them conceding too much field position. At this point Adam Doherty was brought on as a replacement and he had an immediate impact on the game when he sprinted 45 metres before being tackled 5 metres short of the line. Bann turned over the resulting scrum when Joshua Coyle charged down a defensive kick and Richard Graham fed McCreery for his second try of the game, Doherty adding the conversion.

The game continued with a high penalty count against Bann but when thy got possession they were clinical with their counter-attacks. The next score came from turnover ball moved quickly to Macauley Little who was in danger of being caught in possession but stylishly off-loaded between his legs to Doherty who raced home from 50 metres.

The final try of the game again originated from a turnover, this time in the Bann "22". After sustained pressure and tremendous tackling from Chris Knox, McCreery ripped the ball free allowing the backs to move the ball to Doherty who had too much pace for Ballyclare and finished from 80 metres out.

This was a less than perfect display from the U17s but they have worked hard to get to the final and deserve a lot of credit for this season's performances.

The tackling was fantastic on Saturday with Ryan Dennison again prominent. Knox had a massive influence in the pack along with Doherty and Little in the backs.

This Saturday (26th) at 11.30am the U17s take on Malone in the Ulster League Final, with the winners going on to represent their province in the All-Ireland semi-finals. The Bann squad will be glad of your support and you can be assured of an entertaining game from two well-matched teams.

The strength of youth rugby at Rifle Park is underlined by the presence of Bann in the Under-15 League Final as well. Their game against Carrick kicks off at 10.15am, so come along to Lisburn Rugby Club and support these two squads of fine young players who are maintaining a long-established tradition of success at youth level in Banbridge.