Clogher Valley one step away from All Ireland rugby

Clogher Valley are one step away from All Ireland League rugby next season after they came through their Play Off semi-final against Leinster champions Bective Rangers on Saturday at Coolmine.

The Valley weathered an early storm by Bective who used their superior size to good effect in the opening exchanges with most of the play in the first 20 minutes inside the Clogher half.

Valley started to play their own game after this and two converted tries had them leading 14-7 at the break.

That lead was pushed out to 31-14 with 12 minutes left to play and although Bective did get over for another try, Clogher were able to see the game out to take their place in the play off final.

Bective started strongly, with Valley soaking up the pressure from the Leinster men who just took one pass and looked for contact, recycling the ball effectively.

As the match progressed, more and more Bective players looked to the bench for medical support and this slowed the game down, suiting the Leinster team.

There was 32 minutes on the clock, when the visitors struck.

On their first real visit to the Bective 22 metre area, the Valley recycled the ball a number of times, pulling the defenders out of position. Kyle Cobane using his power and strength took the ball at the base of the ruck and pushed several defenders out of the way to open the scoring. David Maxwell converted the try to put the Valley 7-0 up.

The large travelling Valley crowd had only three minutes to wait to watch their side go further ahead.

David Maxwell fired a long pass to Paul Armstrong, who delayed his pass to set Taine Haire free down the left wing. The flying winger went past his marker and sprinted the remaining 40 metres to score under the posts. David Maxwell added the conversion, and the Valley went 14-0 ahead.

As the match came to the end of its second quarter, Bective kicked a penalty into the corner.

They secured the lineout and drove, inch by inch they moved forward and eventually the additional weight counted and the ball carrier dropped over the line. The outhalf converted the try to reduce Valley’s lead to 14-7.

The turnaround for the second period gave the Valley a slight downhill advantage and it wasn’t long before they added to their score.

David Maxwell slotted a penalty from over 30 metres to put his side 10 points clear.

This appeared to give Valley additional confidence and they started to throw the ball about in a manner that the crowd has become familiar with.

The ball was spun out, Taine Haire popped it back to Aaron Dunwood, then onto Matthew Bothwell, eventually Corneel Michem got his hands on the ball 12 metres out and he drove hard taking the Bective defender with him; to score under the posts.

David Maxwell added the conversion, and the traveling supporters, coaches and players began to relax, thinking they had this game secured.

Bective had other ideas, they resorted to their one pop pass and drove hard at the smaller Valley players.

Eventually they made their way to the corner, they secured the lineout and in a repeat of the first half score they drove over in the corner. With the conversion secured the score was 24-14 to the Valley.

The game was now on a knife edge. Should Bective score next, it would up their confidence and with 17 minutes left, overcoming a 10-point deficit would not have been out of the question.

Five minutes later, Aaron Dunwoody broke down the right, he then popped back inside and several recycles later he was on hand to drive a further 10 metres towards the Bective line.

As Matthew Bothwell spun the ball out, Recce Smyton coming at an angle burst through and got pulled down two metres out, but he had the awareness to stretch and place the ball on the line.

David Maxwell added the conversion, and this took the Valley to beyond two converted tries, 31-14 with 12 minutes to play.

Bective were not throwing in the towel and continued to press. They spread the ball wide in a manner that was lacking in the earlier part of the game, but the Valley defence was equal to the task.

The final try of the day came from another lineout. Bective secured the ball and used their bulk to drive the ball over to score in the corner.

The accuracy of the Bective outhalf failed him on this attempt.

As the match clock wound down to zero, the Valley players knew they had the game won.

When the referee awarded a penalty, David Maxwell was in no rush to attempt the kick. He casually stepped up and slotted the kick, giving the Ulster side a lead of 34-19. The referee brought the proceedings to an end, putting the Valley one step closer to All Ireland rugby.

This was a fantastic achievement from the players, coaching and whole backroom team.

The Valley had 30 – 35 per cent possession, but when they did get the ball, they struck with devastating effect. They soaked up all the pressure from Bective and pounced when any opportunity arose, the sign of a great team.