Ballynahinch 3rds 63 v 10 Ards 2nds

The Ards men faced a Ballynahinch side who will no doubt be fighting at the top end of the league come the end of the season, their balance of powerful runners and pace out wide proved to be too much for Ards on Saturday past.

Having started brightly and controlling the game for the first 8mins the Ards men succumbed possession at ruck time with a stray foot kicking the ball through to the Ballynahinch side, the Hinch men reacted quickest and moved the ball wide to score a 50m try against the run of play. Conversion missed 5-0.

Ards regrouped from the kick off and competed well in defence, earning a penalty 40m. A quality kick to the corner from Joel DePledge was subsequently lost at the lineout but as the ball went loose prop Jordan Montgomery got there first to level the scores. 5-5.

Having competed well for 15mins Ards struggled to make use of any possession and frequently squandered opportunities to move the ball wide and as they tried to compete through the heart of the strong Hinch defence.

As the game lost it’s structure this favoured the Hinch back three who scored a number of long range tries as they capitalised on the Ards mistakes.

On 39 mins Ards had a lineout on the Hinch 10m line and an excellent set piece play saw Cameron McKee split the Hinch defence before being scragged 10m from the line, Ards recycled well and a strong carry from Aaron Fullerton saw him go over with the last play of the first half and give some hope to a deflated Ards side as they came off 39-10 down at the break.

Ards talked at the break about the need for a structured game, but despite this conceded a 50m try in the 1st minute of the second half through a wayward offload when they looked to be causing the Hinch defence some trouble.

This was backed up by a further try on 46mins where they got caught out by a strong carry close the the ruck. 51-10.

For the next 15mins Ards did well to absorb further pressure and the introduction of Matthew Bell brought a good balance to the back row, as Adam McKee moved up to lock. The work rate of both Conran Stewart and Max Harrison in the back row was exceptional and they worked tirelessly in defence and competed well at ruck time to slow down the Hinch attack but unfortunately the Ards men ran out of steam towards the end of the second half and a wayward pass in the Ards 22 let Hinch canter in for another try.

The Ards men looked deflated at this point and conceded a further try from 60m out as they got caught with some lazy defence at ruck time. 63-10.

This was a disappointing performance given the nature of the performances and the wins so far this season, however it will be a learning experience for what was a very young team that weren’t helped by the absence of some key players.

However there where positives to take in the return of Mike Taylor at full back who had a good performance and Cameron McKee who looked dangerous with ball in hand. A man of the match performance from Conran Stewart showed his potential as a back row option, and Max Harrison who was extremely unlucky not to be on the 1sts worked tirelessly for 80mins.

Team: J Miller, D Chivers, J Montgomery, E Dodge, J Miskimmin, M Harrison, C Stewart, A McKee, G Wilson, C McKee, J DePledge, A Fullerton, S McKee, M Taylor. Replacements: M Bell, R Thompson, C McCullough.