RUGBY

Senior Cup Team

This year’s Senior Cup Team entered the Vinnie Murray Cup in early January and was drawn against St. Andrew’s College. Another tough draw for this team after being drawn into the ‘group of death’ in the league. We had five weeks to prepare with the match scheduled for immediately after the Christmas break. Donnybrook was the venue for this Cup match. It was a cup day like many others, with the nerves, the noise, the pressure and, of course, the support. In a very closely fought game, it ended unfortunately in defeat for St. Gerard’s. With bare and honest reflection, it was one of the team’s worst performances, too often giving access for St. Andrew’s to attack through our own errors. These days are always hard to take. Much like life, sometimes the effort does not reflect the outcome. This is sport of course and this is how it can build character. For the 2022-23 St. Gerard’s SCT Rugby team, with the right attitude there would be one last opportunity awaiting - the Vinnie Murray Plate Competition. The players regrouped after the disappointment. They promised themselves, and they promised one another to continue training to their best ability and go and win the Plate. This is what they did. In the final four weeks of the year, the shackles fell off, training was fluid, players were connecting and the team had one simple target with all players rowing in unison and in the same direction. The SCT had four matches left to play, two friendlies against Belvedere College and The King’s Hospital School and two plate games against Ardscoil Rís and unknown at the time, a final against The High School. They aimed to win all four and they were successful, scoring on average over forty points per game. The Vinnie Murray Final was hosted in St. Mary’s College RFC against a tough and motivated High School team. After a slow start, St. Gerard’s were behind on the scoreboard due to some effective and organised High School forwards play. St Gerard’s stuck to the process and pulled ahead with a faultless 10-minute period of rugby, yielding two excellent team tries. It seemed throughout the game that St. Gerard’s might pull clear and open up a sizeable lead. However, all credit to High School as they always stayed in the fight in an end-to-end game that saw nearly 80 points scored between the teams. The final score saw St. Gerard’s lift the Plate with a 45-34 win and was a fitting reward for these players who can be proud of themselves as they move on from St. Gerard’s life and into Senior rugby with more wins and friendships gained.

Senior 2

The Senior 2 team got off to a great start of the season as a combination of 4th, 5th, and 6th Year students defeated some strong teams. After their closely contested win against The Oratory School, there was no stopping this St. Gerard’s side as they went on to defeat Presentation College, Bray and Kilkenny College respectively in the second and third rounds of their league with captain and vice-captain Victor Cullen and Harvey O’Sullivan both scoring tries to give them their third and fourth wins of the season. The St. Gerard’s spirits were once again lifted as they triumphantly defeated Oatlands College at home to secure themselves a spot in the semi-final of the Leinster Seconds Cup facing Belvedere College. After a very tough game away Belvedere were found to be too much and took the win in the last match of the season. A bitter way to finish the 6 Year’s rugby careers but it was all smiles in the huddle afterwards. A fantastic group of players and some brilliant prospects for the future.

Senior 3

Nearly a month after dispatching CBC Monkstown in their league semi-final, news came through of their eagerly anticipated TY/5th Year league final against St. Mary’s College. With a reduced squad, due to the Spanish Exchange, we knew our backs were against the wall to try and go one step further than last year and win the TY league. The squad braved severe elements and faced an outfit that was much bigger than them and had a much larger pool of players. They played some of the best rugby of their year in the final. The forwards worked their socks off and were accurate at the set pieces. Similarly, the backline executed some beautiful pieces of play and capitalised on an excellent kicking strategy. In what was the toughest game of the year, they finished 15 - 12 winners!

Junior Rugby

The JCT officially came together in June, when training commenced for what would hopefully be a successful and memorable season. For many, JCT rugby exposes the boys for the first time to proper game plans, shapes & structures, strength and conditioning training and how to prepare for games both physically and mentally. Therefore, it is a season where a huge amount of rugby education is installed. This rugby education provides a solid foundation of knowledge that will stand to them as they move on into the Senior Cycle. A lot of emphasis went into building the culture of the team, including work ethic, respect and above all enjoyment. With the culture set, it flowed into the season. Despite a rough start in the league away to Newbridge College, the JCT managed to secure their first win in a come-from-behind victory against Presentation College, Bray. This was a must-win game for the team in terms of the goals they had set for themselves and also guaranteed qualification for the Leinster Schools Junior Cup. The team went on to win the remainder of their group games with memorable victories at home to Kilkenny College and Cistercian College Roscrea to finish second in their group with three wins from four matches. This was then followed by a brilliant win in the quarter-final against Wesley College. Unfortunately, the team came up short in the semi-final against St. Vincent’s Castleknock College, which would go on to win the league final. The first round of the Junior Cup saw the JCT play Presentation College, Bray in a titanic battle. The JCT came out with a 7-3 victory and was a day the players won’t forget. A tough match and a deserved victory. The draw for the second round was made and a clash v Blackrock College beckoned. On a wonderful occasion at Donnybrook, the team lost 38-7 to a very good Blackrock College team who would go on to win the Junior Cup Final. However, the score did not reflect the match and the team gave a very good account of themselves. Overall, the JCT can be very proud of their season. There is now huge excitement around what this group can achieve as they move on to their SCT experience. Everyone in the school looks forward to seeing this play out over the next two to three years. Well done boys.

U15 Rugby

Gryffindor A’s & Hufflepuff’s B’s

The 1st Year group of boys arrived eager to learn and to start their rugby journey in Big School. It was important from the outset to see who had played and who was starting rugby for the first time. We needed to look at not only the tackle area but ruck, run, catch, and pass, along with improving their skills and understanding of the game. What was important going through the entire year with the group, was that we kept swapping players around to gain experience in different positions but also changing them from team to team and challenging them constantly. Highlights of the season included long away trips to Ballyclare High School, Bandon Grammar and Glenstal Abbey, producing both great performances and a great atmosphere for the lads to enjoy. Gryfindors will remember their last game of the season securing an away win against Glenstal Abbey (29-14). The Hufflepuffs season ended on the 15th of March losing to CBC Monkstown. They will, however, fondly remember the week before when they won away to Bandon Grammar 34-24. Overall the coaches are very happy with the group and their first year of Senior School rugby. All in all the squad played over 40 matches and did themselves and the school proud.

U14 Rugby

With very little rugby played in Standard 6 by this group of players due to COVID restrictions the focus this year has been on the development of the players’ skill set and understanding of their roles during a game not only as individuals but as part of a team. After a slow start to the season that saw the side suffer heavy defeats to Gonzaga and St. Michael’s, the players’ dedication and commitment to training resulted in a string of impressive victories over Clongowes Wood College, Templecarrig, St. Andrew’s and Willow Park, as well as an undefeated run at The King’s Hospital Blitz. If the improvement shown by the U14 squad so far this season continues into the New Year then there is every reason to be excited by what the future holds for rugby in St. Gerard’s.