Blistering Bangor bag bonus at Ballyclare

This time last year, Bangor were in a similar position – good pre-season performances, and looking forward with optimism to the league. However, on that occasion they were undone by a combination of Ballyclare’s determined display and an uninspiring performance by themselves. No doubt mindful of that, Bangor approached this fixture with more positivity and effort.

From Ballyclare’s kick-off, and playing into the wind, Bangor took possession and brought play back inside the home side’s half. The first scrum gave Ballyclare a taste of what was to come, as they were pushed back off their own put in, conceding a penalty in the process. In fact Bangor’s scrum and lineout set pieces were looking solid, not only securing their own ball, but disrupting and, on occasion, stealing that of their opponents. After a few minutes, Bangor won another penalty which looked to be in a more kickable position, but Ross McCloskey’s kick drifted wide. Another chance was lost when captain Jamie Clegg looked to have a clear run to open the score, but the ball slipped out of his hands just before crossing the line. Just a minute later, following a long clearance kick from Ballyclare, Bangor counter-attacked through their backs, eventually getting the ball to Davy Charles on the right wing. He kicked over the defence and set off in pursuit, but the bounce of the ball fell awkwardly towards touch and the chance was gone. Having almost all of the attacking play so far, and not converting these scoring chances, fears were that this again may not be Bangor’s day. However, with 14 minutes gone, sustained pressure by Bangor earned them another penalty deep inside Ballyclare’s twenty two. This was compounded by a yellow card for a Ballyclare forward for not rolling away from a tackle. Opting for the scrum, Bangor controlled their drive which led to a straightforward push-over try by David Bradford, which was then converted by McCloskey.

As they were having difficulty breaking through Bangor’s defensive line, Ballyclare were opting to kick for position which, after 18 minutes, led to their first real attacking opportunity. Several moves across their backs were halted by a well-organised Bangor defence, before the ball was turned over and Bangor counter-attacked. This time the ball came to number 8 Bradford on the half way line. He initially dummied his first tackler, then chipped over the defence, before gathering the ball and diving over for an excellent try to the right of the Ballyclare posts. With McCloskey’s kick hitting the upright, the score had now moved on to 0-12.

As the game entered its second quarter, Bangor continued to enjoy long spells of possession, much of which was in Ballyclare’s territory. A patient build-up and well executed movement of the ball led to Bangor’s next try. Starting with scrum half Jason Guthrie, the ball was moved swiftly across the backs. With full back McCloskey joining the line, the Ballyclare defence was stretched as he off-loaded to Charles on the wing, who then sprinted away to score under the posts. The easy conversion brought the score to 0-19, with Bangor now playing with increasing confidence.

Ballyclare’s responses were purposeful, but on several occasions failed to come to anything as a result of handling errors. One such mistake while advancing deep into Bangor’s half, resulted in the ball being turned over and coming to Mike Weir in the centre. Having broken through the Ballyclare line, he passed outside to Mark Widdowson on the left wing. Having taken the ball on his own 10 metre line, and with the Ballyclare defence moving across to cover him, Widdowson needed all his speed and strength to both evade and then ride out the tackles before scoring Bangor’s bonus point try towards the left hand touchline. The conversion was missed but, Bangor were now comfortably ahead by 0-24.

As the teams turned around at half time, Bangor now had the luxury of the wind at their backs for the remainder of the game, but it was Ballyclare who started the more brightly, enjoying plenty of possession and restricting Bangor to defensive duties. However, Bangor coped well with this opening period and, while not being able to mount any attacks of their own, managed to restrict the Ballyclare advance. Following James Leary’s yellow card for an infringement at a ruck, Ballyclare sensed an opportunity to capitalise on Bangor’s loss. However, not only did Bangor’s defence stand firm, it was they who scored during Leary’s absence with a superb break from Guthrie who caught the Ballyclare defence off guard and ran through to score under the posts.

Bangor were now playing with composure and assurance, and following some quick thinking after the ball had gone into touch after a Ballyclare knock-on, a quickly taken lineout found the home defence in disarray, giving Jason Morgan a straightforward run under the posts for another converted try. With the pack now back to full strength, another lineout shortly afterwards provided the opportunity for a catch and drive, which was finished off with a strong break for the line by hooker Andrew Jackson. This 6 minute blitz was completed by Charles who managed to gather his chip ahead and touch down on the line, despite the close attention of Ballyclare captain Gary Weatherup.

With the score now 0-48, and with 15 minutes of normal time remaining, the result was no longer in doubt. However, by this stage it could be argued that while Ballyclare’s pride was at stake, they now had more motivation to score than Bangor. A lapse in concentration from the restart by Bangor provided Ballyclare with the break they were looking for and, following good movement across the backs from left to right, they finally crossed Bangor’s line for their consolation try and conversion.

No doubt irritated at the loss of a clean defensive sheet, Bangor response was swift. A quickly taken tap penalty by Bradford saw him make good ground before passing to his left and finding McCloskey inside Widdowson on the wing. This time McCloskey had the speed and space to dive over in the corner for what turned out to be the final score of the game, and sealing a 7-53 victory.

This was an excellent team performance, interspersed with some outstanding individual skill. To record such an emphatic result away from home, and against stiff opposition is a worthy achievement. Bangor will certainly be looking to repeat this next weekend when they host CIYMS at Upritchard Park – a fixture that promises a dash more than the usual spice, especially given the controversial circumstances of the previous meeting between these two sides.

Bangor team: O McIlmurray, A Jackson, P Whyte, M Ferguson, C Burton, D Kelly, J Clegg (c), D Bradford, J Guthrie, J Morgan, M Widdowson, M Weir, M Aspley, D Charles, R McCloskey

Subs: J Leary, C Stewart

Bangor scores: D Bradford (2T), D Charles (2T), M Widdowson (1T), J Guthrie (1T), J Morgan (1T), A Jackson (1T), R McCloskey (1T, 4C)