Although Bangor’s injury list continues to get bigger each week, the encouraging result at Dungannon in the Junior Cup last weekend provided a welcome boost in confidence ahead of this fixture against newly promoted Limavady, who are unbeaten so far this season. The air of positivity was also apparent all around Upritchard Park as the refurbished clubhouse was being formally opened, with rugby stars – both past and present – and several dignitaries from local schools, politics and sporting bodies in attendance. It was certainly a special day for the club as it looks to use its upgraded facilities to grow both cricket and rugby at Upritchard Park for the coming generations. Thankfully, the good weather encouraged a large crowd of spectators to take up position on the touchlines and provide great support for the players.

Limavady kicked off with the wind at their backs, and enjoyed the best of the opening exchanges. Within the first few minutes, it looked like they had breached the Bangor defence, only to be denied an early score when Connor McKee intercepted what would have been a try-scoring pass and cleared the danger. Having survived this early scare, Bangor set about building their own attacks, and were soon rewarded with an excellent try when a break down the left wing saw Ally McIvor and Josh Carmen link up well, before Carmen made the final break and touched down for the opening try, which was then converted by Rhys Larmour. Bangor had another scoring opportunity a few minutes later from a penalty, but the long-range kick was just wide of the posts and the score remained at 7-0 after 12 minutes of play.

While the set pieces had been a fairly even-handed affair so far, Limavady’s rucking was better organised and more intense. This made its mark when a Limavady forward picked up at the bottom of a ruck close to Bangor’s twenty-two, and ran straight through to score under the Bangor posts. The simple conversion was added which levelled the scores at 7-7.

Although Bangor had some good attacking opportunities, it was the visitors who made their attacks count. A mixture of good passing through the Limavady backs combined with incomplete tackling by the Bangor defence saw Limavady score twice more, to bring the score to 7-19 by half time.

Bangor got the second half underway, and it was soon clear to see that they had been given a rocket during the half time team-talk. Playing with renewed intensity, Marty Withers collected the ball on the half way line and set off on a strong run through the centre, crashing through the Limavady tackling before off-loading to Ally McIvor who finished off the break with a clear run through to score under the Limavady posts. With Larmour adding the conversion, Bangor were right back in contention at 14-19, with only a few minutes of the second half played.

Bangor worked hard to maintain this pressure, but were met with an equally determined defence. It was not until the game entered its final quarter that Bangor could finally make their breakthrough. Having kicked a penalty into the Limavady twenty-two and then secured their lineout, Bangor formed a driving maul that trundled towards the Limavady goal line. Although the defence managed to halt this drive, Bangor recycled the ball and Jake Burns was on hand to force his way over the final few metres and score to the left of Limavady’s posts. Larmour produced a great conversion into the wind to add the extras and put Bangor back into a narrow 21-19 lead.

Unfortunately, Bangor’s recurring tackling problems soon resurfaced, which Limavady took full advantage of and ran through once more for an easy try under the posts which, when converted, put them back in the lead by 21-26, and earning them a try-scoring bonus point in the process.

As the clock ticked down, it was Limavady who were on the front foot, and Bangor looked to be hanging on for a very welcome losing bonus point. However, sustained pressure on Bangor’s line eventually yielded a penalty for Limavady and a yellow card for Bangor as they desperately tried to regain possession. As the simple kick from close to Bangor’s posts extended Limavady’s lead to 21-29, the referee blew for the end of the game, much to the despair of the battling Bangor men.

Bangor have had a testing start to the season, but now seem to be moving in the right direction. To have come so close against a side that has been putting big scores against their opponents is encouraging. However, Bangor still need to iron out some costly errors if they are to seriously challenge Omagh – another unbeaten side – next weekend at Thomas Mellon Park.

[Click HERE to view more photos of this game, courtesy of Steve Haslett of Limavady RFC]