CHAMPIONSHIP 2
ARDS 28
LISBURN 27
ARDS welcomed Lisburn RFC to Hamilton Park on Saturday, seeking a third successive Championship 3 victory.
The home side were mostly unchanged, with starts for James Ward at prop and Ross Torney in the second row, while Danny McCullough returned with a place on the bench.
The two sides had already met this season in the cup, with Ards earning a close away win, and although Lisburn have gone on to experience an inconsistent campaign, they have managed to take a couple of big scalps along the way and a tough encounter was expected on a fine but windy afternoon.
Playing towards Scrabo and into a stiff breeze, early pressure from Ards saw them camped in the Lisburn 22 with a series of heavy carries by the pack. Following a number of phases, the backs were released and wing Ethan Bell took out two defenders to offload to full-back Angus Christie to dot down the opening try out wide after five minutes. The difficult conversion was wide, but the lead was taken at 5-0.
Lisburn fought back well from the restart, although Ards managed to clear their lines and work their way upfield. Winning two penalties in close succession, they kicked for touch and a driving lineout maul resulted in hooker Paul Hamilton taking Ards’ second try. The conversion was just wide, but Ards now had a lead of 10-0 after 15 minutes.
As the first quarter was closing, some indiscipline by Ards at the breakdown and tackle area saw them lose ground and a well worked move by Lisburn gave them an overlap and a good score for their wing to move the score to 10-5. From the restart, Lisburn were now enjoying a purple patch and were piecing together some well worked phases. Within five minutes, another score was taken to draw the game level at 10-10.
Ards’ recent discipline in their basics was lacking and a number of handling errors and wrong decisions were costing them possession and territory. One error too many gave an opportunity to the Lisburn wing, who cut through the chasing Ards midfield to score his second try under the posts. With the conversion taken, Lisburn took a clear lead at 10-17 on the half-hour mark.
Fortunately for Ards, they managed to hold some shape for the rest of the half and it closed with the scores unchanged.
From the kick-off, Ards were into their work well and strong runs from Matthew Bell and Robbie Grant gained good ground. Pushing into the Lisburn 22, a good carry from Ward saw him wrestle through a number of defenders to take his maiden try under the posts. Christie’s conversion was good and the scores were now level at 17-17.
Lisburn fought back well for the rest of the third quarter, but Ards survived the onslaught and moved upfield to earn a kickable penalty. Well taken by Christie, Ards regained the lead at 20-17. The sides fought for territory from the restart and Lisburn were more dominant in contact, earning a further try and a lead of 20-22 with 10 minutes remaining in the match.
The sides worked hard in trying to gain a small advantage as play centralised for a short period, ending with Ards winning a penalty on the Lisburn 10-metre line. Opting for the kick, Christie’s effort was good and Ards took the lead again at 23-22.
The restart saw Lisburn quickly into the Ards half, but a break out to the right by captain Ryan Upritchard was supported by Trevor Devlin. Moving the ball quickly to the left, fly-half Robbie Johnston made a 40-metre break through the middle before releasing a long pass to Matthew Bell on the left wing. Fending off the last three defenders, Bell touched down in the corner for a fine try. Christie’s conversion kick was just wide, but Ards extended their lead to 28-22.
With less than five minutes to play, Lisburn threw everything they had at the Ards defence, who were prepared to repel the threat through the middle at any cost. In the end, Lisburn’s work was forced out wide to the right and their wing touched down in the corner for his hat-trick. A difficult conversion into the wind would have earned Lisburn the win and as the Ardsmen held their breath, the kick was short and Ards took a hard earned victory at 28-27 to move to joint third in the league table.
Ards’ thanks go to Lisburn for a tough encounter and they look forward to the return fixture in the early New Year. This Friday evening, Ards visit Academy RFC at Roughfort in the quarter-final of the Junior Shield with a 7.45pm kick-off.
