Skins 26-18 Cooke

Enniskillen secured a spot in the Semi-Final of the All-Ireland Junior Cup with a determined victory over Belfast rivals Cooke.

This was the third clash between the sides this season at Mullaghmeen, leaving little room for surprises. Despite grappling with a lengthy injury list, Enniskillen fielded a resilient team.

In favourable conditions, the home side received the kick-off and immediately pushed into Cooke’s 22.

However, a penalty allowed Cooke to clear their lines, and another penalty shifted the play deep into Enniskillen’s half. After sustained pressure, the visitors capitalized, taking the lead with a penalty kick 10 minutes in.

Skins restarted and did well to win the ball back. A foray by Rooney, a quick rucked ball, and changes in the angle of the attack led to the ever-alert Angus Keys crossing for a try, which was improved by his brother Eddie.

On 18 minutes, Cooke again got a foothold in the Skins half and displayed their ability to keep the ball through phases.

Following an attack down the right-hand side, the ball was swept left and ended in their fullback scoring a good try in the corner. Cooke with an 8-7 lead.

Following a series of forward drives and good handling down the left-hand side, it appeared Enniskillen had scored in the corner, but the ball was deemed to have been held up.

The home side struggled to convert pressure into points during this phase of the game. However, Captain James Ferguson set the standard with a series of impactful plays. His turnovers, kick receptions, and line breaks kept Enniskillen on the front foot.

Just before halftime, Skins’ persistence paid off. Excellent team defence forced a Cooke error near the Skins’ 22.

From the resulting scrum, Henry Keys surged to the 10-meter line. Mattie Dane then released Eddie Keys from the ruck, who broke through to Cooke's 10-meter line before delivering a looping pass to Trotter on the left wing.

Though tackled just short in the corner, Trotter kept the ball alive. Dane again connected with Keys, who slipped through a gap to touch down. The conversion was missed, but Skins carried a 12-8 lead into the break.

Cooke nearly scored from the restart, when the kick-off was dropped and appeared to have been knocked on.

Cooke took advantage of those waiting for the scrum on their 22, by realising one hadn’t been awarded and continuing to play, only to be stopped by a scramble defence on the Skins’ 22.

However, play was soon back in Cooke territory and when they tried to clear with a box-kick, Eddie Keys fielded and returned a towering ‘up-and-under’, which the Cooke fullback dropped.

Angus Keys scooped it up and off-loaded to Steve Balfour who crossed under the pots. He appeared to have fallen on the ball and clearly scored, before being ‘flipped’ onto his back by the tackler, but a goal-line drop-out was awarded.

Lendrum and Sam Balfour nearly conjured a score in the right corner and then Cameron Smith bulled forward following a tapped penalty before Angus Keys got his second try. As with the first one, it immediately followed a good carry by Rooney. Eddie Keys converted to make it 19-8.

Ferguson collected the restart and quickly released Trotter down the left wing. Trotter chipped the ball ahead, and Angus Keys was quick to tackle the full-back, keeping Cooke under pressure.

Skins regained control in the Cooke half, and from a lineout on the 22-meter line, the ball was spread wide. Trotter looped around to support Sam Balfour on the right.
The play shifted back to the left, and from a ruck near the posts, Mattie Dane passed to Neill Rutledge, who feigned a carry before delivering a slick pass to Eddie Keys.

Keys sliced through the defence to score and then added the conversion, pushing the lead to 26-8.

In the final 10 minutes, Cooke mounted a strong comeback, managing to score twice despite fierce resistance from the Skins' defence. Crucially, both tries were scored out wide, and the missed conversions left the score at 26-18.

Enniskillen now face an away trip to Tullow RFC in the Semi-Final, while Dromore will host Bective Rangers in the other fixture, both set for December 14.

This Saturday, Skins are back in action at home against Armagh 2s in the Quarter-Final of the Ulster Junior Cup. Kick-off is at 2.30pm as Alastair Keys' side hope to book another semi-final spot.