Mini’s & Youths Rugby notes for weekend 13/12

Under 11s

Ballincollig U11s travelled to Old Christians on Saturday. Ballincollig were below strength and despite good effort the first half saw four soft tries conceded.  When all seemed lost however the team showed great courage and came back to win the second half by two tries.  Courageous tackling and fine running were notable from David Hurley, Dean Carey, Robert Dennehy, Ronan Power, Evan McArdle and Ben O’Connor.  Daniel Quinn, Jamie Brydon and Matt Moran were fantastic in the forwards and put huge pressure on the opposition.  Cathal O’Donoghue and Rory Kiely did very well with a try each.  The coaches felt very proud of the team’s spirit to come back the way they did.  Thanks to all the support from the parents and we would like to wish you all a happy and peaceful Christmas.

Under 13s

Ballincollig recovered from 2 consecutive defeats to record a 27-19 win in this highly entertaining match on a heavy pitch with our near neighbours Muskerry in Ballyanly. The match coincided with the U14s league game against the same opposition which meant we were able to put together a full team. A bright day saw a bright start with centre Rian Brennan crossing for a well worked try early in the game. Muskerry responded straightaway to score themselves before Paraic O’Keeffe, back from injury, returned with another trademark surging run up the pitch crossed for the first of his 3 tries. Shane Buckley also chipped in with a try of his own as well as a conversion and the game finished with two determined teams contesting rigidly on the Collig line before Muskerry pressure got them in for the last score of the game. Ballincollig played with great spirit and enthusiasm and adapted to the conditions with some intelligent kicking into space from Liam McGarry. We asked players to play in new positions and all responded positively which increases our options for future games. Special mention to the performances of hooker Aidan Kilgrew, flanker Patrick Kavanagh and lock Patrick Forde whose performances keep improving and Darragh Shaughnessy and Rian who both covered a lot of ground supporting their teammates. While rucking and tackling need more work the guys look forward to the next U13 fixture next Sat v Bandon away to finish off 2014 with another win where we will have the full squad to select from as the UJ14s have no match. Finally, well done to Patrick Kelly, Chris Moran, Cathal McDermott and Shane Buckley who never looked out of place while playing in the 14’s league match v Muskerry on the pitch beside.

 

Under 14s

Muskerry 15 – Ballincollig 15

This was a match which Ballincollig did not deserved to win, but could have won and managed to get a draw. Every match against our nearest neighbours always adds a bit of drama as neither wants to give the other bragging rights and this game was no different.  On a day which the weather conditions were favourable this match never got into a free flowing rhythm. The match was dominated by the forwards for the most part. Ballincollig got the first try after 10 minutes after starting well and putting the home team under pressure. A reasonably easy conversion effort was missed however which would prove costly later. Muskerry however were not going to let the visitors have it all their own way and the tide turned very quickly. Muskerry had an advantage with a larger pack and they used this to their advantage at the rucks. This was where Ballincollig let themselves down. Despite focusing on the ruck breakdown at training it did not replicate on the pitch and time after time Muskerry won the 50/50 rucks. Muskerry managed to get 2 quick tries from kicking over the top and putting Ballincollig at the back foot and winning the rucks. It was not a good day for the kickers of both teams and both Muskerry conversions missed. The first half ending 10 points to 5 to the home team. The second half continued where the first half ended with Muskerry continuing to play the ball more intelligently than Ballincollig and when the visiting Ballincollig team did get the ball it was played poorly by a mixture of bad passing or poor decisions on play. However, with 10 minutes to go, the game changed. Out of nothing, Ballincollig got a try, despite a missed conversion kick it was all square. For the first time in the game, Ballincollig played the way we know they can. Pressure was put on the home team and 2 minutes later after great pressure on the wing Ballincollig shoved their way over for a try. Again a missed kick, but to be fair this was a hard kick. Now Ballincollig had the lead. But instead of taking the game by the collar and finish out strong as would be expected, Ballincollig appeared to panic with only a couple of minutes left and Muskerry found themselves yards from the Ballincollig try line. Despite a valiant defensive effort it was only a matter of time before Muskerry got the try as they piled on the pressure and found the overlap.

With a kick to win the the game for Muskerry, the ball headed for between the posts only to drop just short. A relief for the visiting team. The ball was kicked off but the match finished within a minute at the half way line. On reflection Muskerry would be the more disappointed of the 2 teams with the result but Ballincollig would be disappointed with their general play. With any realistic chance of making the playoffs now difficult after 3 poor games in a row, Ballincollig now need to raise their game to keep mid table. Plenty to do in the training grounds over the next few weeks before the next game against Dolphin in January

 

Under 18s

Ballincollig 17pts                    Sundays Well 5pts.

Ballincollig got their U 18 league back on track with an extremely hard fought victory over Sundays Well @ Tanner park on last sat 13th Dec 2014. The game played in ideal rugby conditions, with dry weather and underfoot conditions opened with Sundays Well on the offensive. They retained possession and  pinned Ballincollig back in their half for the first 10 mins. They used their strong running forwards at ruck time and they were awarded for their efforts as they opened the scoring with their winger touching down in the corner. Ballincollig had to regroup quickly. They upped their efforts and intensity. They gained field position and kept the Well on the back foot inside their 22. Ballincollig were awarded a penalty and kicked for touch. Fionnán Mc Dermott gathered from the line out and Ballincolligs’ trade mark maul went into gear. They pushed Sun Well back from their 22 and James “Peach” Kelleher touched down for Ballincollig’s first try on 19 mins. Both sides had periods of dominance but cancelled one another out. Ballincollig were gaining the upper hand towards the end of the first half. They were awarded a penalty on the Well 22 and again kicked for touch. Fionnán Mc Dermott again gathered from the line out. The Well were prepared to counteract the maul but left a gap in their defence which Fionnán exploited and he ran in unopposed to touch down under the posts which Cameron Lucey converted to leave the half time score 12pts to 5 in favour of the home side. On the resumption Sun Well were the more aggressive parity with aggressive rucking and running. They were unlucky not to score as they had an overlap on the Ballincollig 22. However they knocked on with the line at their mercy. This definitely gave Ballincollig a “get out of gaol card”. They regrouped and dominated to the end of the game. They were camped on the Well 22 for the final 7 mins. They kept possession through many phases of rucking and got to the Sun Well line. Humphrey O Mahony gathered the bal and dived over the ruck American Football style and scored a well deserved try The final whistle was greeted with much relief by the home side and left the final score 17 pts to 5 to Ballincollig. This was a tough encounter between two big packs who squared up to each other toe to toe but cancelled out one another for most of the game.

Ballincollig’s defence of Brian Verling Aaron Mc Namara Adam Collins, Adam Hurley, Kieran Devaney, and Dave Mc Coy defended extremely well and counter attacked when the opportunities arose. Their pack led by Kevin O Riordan, Dara Buckley, James Kelleher, Mickey O Shea, Paul Mc Coy, Dave Barry Jack Kelleher Humphrey O Mahony and Fionnán Mc Dermott put in  a massive shift to secure their victory.

They now have a well deserved rest until the new year when they play their final game away in West Cork V Bantry in the new year.

 

Fixtures Weekend 20/Dec/2014

U13 – Bandon Away kick off TBC

U14 – Training Tanner Park 11.30am

U16 – League QF Skibereen Tanner Park kick off 11am

U18 – Training Tanner Park 11.30am

All player registrations & subscriptions are now OVER DUE these can be paid in the club house on Saturday morning

Club shop open every Saturday morning 9.45am