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U-17 Boys enjoy thriller with Westport
Michael Gallagher16 Dec - 16:53
Friday Night Lights shine bright for U-17 Friendly clash
Friday the 13th proved unlucky for Ballina U-17 Boys who lost out to Westport thanks to a late intercept try having led for the majority of a rip roaring contest at Heffernan Park, last Friday.
The 26-22 scoreline tells a tale of a well-contested match where little spearated the sides from start to finish.
The two well-matched teams with different strengths gave the watching crowd plenty of entertainment, with Westport utilising their physicality in the scrum to great effect, whilst Ballina relied on their speed of ball through the hands to try to outflank the visiting defence.
Ballina started brightly matching their opponents in the breakdown and securing good ruck ball and were rewarded when Alex Mescal touched down in the corner for the first score. Eoin Golden, one of the U-16 boys who augmented the squad on the night, duly slotted over the conversion.
Westport replied soon after with a converted try, to leave the scores level. Golden then slotted a penalty to restore the Moysiders lead, which was added to with a great team try finished by Jamie Devers, another star of the U-16s, with Golden duly converting.
Ballina took the half-time refreshments 17-7 up, with Westport returning to the paddock and adding a try early in the second half. Tries were then shared with Jason O’Regan dotting down for the home side before Westport responded with a converted try to leave the score 22-19 for the hosts.
Both teams had chances to add to the score as the game entered the final minutes. However, with three minutes on the clock, an intercept in midfield was finished under the posts by the visitors and duly converted to leave Westport the victors by four points.
The Ballina boys can take great encouragement from their overall display, with the work on the training field bearing fruit, especially resourcing rucks and speed at the breakdown. Having not played for a few weeks, this game will give great confidence as they head into 2025.
Well done to all, and special thanks to the U-16 boys who assisted on the night.
#ontothenextone
The 26-22 scoreline tells a tale of a well-contested match where little spearated the sides from start to finish.
The two well-matched teams with different strengths gave the watching crowd plenty of entertainment, with Westport utilising their physicality in the scrum to great effect, whilst Ballina relied on their speed of ball through the hands to try to outflank the visiting defence.
Ballina started brightly matching their opponents in the breakdown and securing good ruck ball and were rewarded when Alex Mescal touched down in the corner for the first score. Eoin Golden, one of the U-16 boys who augmented the squad on the night, duly slotted over the conversion.
Westport replied soon after with a converted try, to leave the scores level. Golden then slotted a penalty to restore the Moysiders lead, which was added to with a great team try finished by Jamie Devers, another star of the U-16s, with Golden duly converting.
Ballina took the half-time refreshments 17-7 up, with Westport returning to the paddock and adding a try early in the second half. Tries were then shared with Jason O’Regan dotting down for the home side before Westport responded with a converted try to leave the score 22-19 for the hosts.
Both teams had chances to add to the score as the game entered the final minutes. However, with three minutes on the clock, an intercept in midfield was finished under the posts by the visitors and duly converted to leave Westport the victors by four points.
The Ballina boys can take great encouragement from their overall display, with the work on the training field bearing fruit, especially resourcing rucks and speed at the breakdown. Having not played for a few weeks, this game will give great confidence as they head into 2025.
Well done to all, and special thanks to the U-16 boys who assisted on the night.
#ontothenextone
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