Enniskillen captain Stephen Fox believes their Towns Cup victory on Easter Monday could pave the way for a sustained spell of success at Enniskillen Rugby Club.

Fox captained his side to a convincing win over Ballymena II at the Kingspan Stadium, but the experienced forward reckons that victory could be just the start of the honours for the young squad, and he is already looking ahead to next season and going one better than this season’s league runners up finish.

“Win the league hopefully [and then] All Ireland [league],” he admitted was the target for the 2024/25 campaign.

“We just missed out on it this season, but we will regroup again and push next year. We have the team for it. The average age of that team is 21, 22 so there is something big building over the next few years in Enniskillen.”

After a disappointing league finish the previous season, this campaign has been packed with highs, and Fox admits the rapid rise of the inexperienced players was a pleasant surprise.

“With Ally (Alastair Keys) we had faith in the boys. We were a bit surprised at how quick it was going to happen, especially after the last few years, but it is good for the future.”

The new-look squad put in a commanding final performance against Ballymena, racing into an early lead and holding off a first-half fightback before pulling clear again in the second half.

Fox felt the scoreline was a true reflection of their dominance during the match.

“It was good, very good,” he said of his team’s performance. “All the work this year that has went on, and we are over the moon with it. We will have a couple of days celebrating now is the plan! We were the better team. We were better and fitter and it showed. Them two tries just after half-time knocked the stuffing out of them and they were chasing the game after that.

"Credit to Ally and the whole coaching team, especially after missing out on the league this year. We went after the Towns Cup then, and we got it.”