Three wins in a row for Ballymena RFC

Banbridge RFC ..................22

Ballymena RFC ................ 26

BALLYMENA made it three wins on the bounce against Ulster opposition with a hard-fought 26–22 victory away to Banbridge, in a pulsating Division 2A encounter.

The hosts struck first when a well organised close-range maul rumbled over to give Banbridge an early 5–0 lead.

Ballymena responded well, gradually asserting themselves through their forward pack and strong kicking game.

On 35 minutes the Ballymena produced a moment of class to take the lead.

Rodger McBurney gathered the ball and, with a trademark series of sidesteps, carved through the defence towards the try line.

The ball popped up for Milford to finish, with Davidson adding the conversion for a 7–5 Ballymena advantage.

Ballymena struck again just before the interval.

Quick thinking by Robson, who took a tap penalty, putting the Banbridge defence on the back foot, before Clarke ran a superb line from the resulting ruck to score. Davidson’s conversion made it 14–5.

Banbridge, however, had the final say of the half, crossing out wide on the stroke of half time.

The conversion was missed, leaving Ballymena 14–10 ahead at the break.

Ballymena began the second half brightly.

Adam Lamont sparked an attack with a sharp break through the middle and a couple of phases later, Lamont finished off the move he had started to extend the lead to 19–10.

Banbridge responded, again going to their maul, crossing from 10 metres out. Ballymena were reduced to 14 men in the process as James McClean was shown a yellow card, and the gap closed to 19–15.

Momentum swung further towards the home side on 62 minutes when sustained pressure in the Ballymena 22 ended with a try out wide, giving Banbridge a 22–19 lead.

Refusing to buckle, Ballymena showed great character.

The pack once again laid the platform, and Dobbin powered over from close range with a to regain the lead with minutes to go. Davidson converted to make it 26–22.

In the final minutes, Banbridge gave it everything, but the visitors held firm, with the performance epitomised by Luke McCluskey’s crucial lineout steal in Ballymena territory.

Davidson kicked the ball into touch to bring an excellent contest to a close.

It was a strong performance across the entire squad, with a huge effort from the pack providing the foundation for the win and composure shown at key moments.

Ballymena now make it three wins in a row to start 2026 and turn their attention to a big challenge next Saturday when table-toppers Barnhall visit Eaton Park.

BALLYMENA: Rodger McBurney; Peter Munce, Ben Neely, Callum Patterson, Angus Robson; Joe O’Rawe, Callum Davidson; Andrew Warwick, Alexander Clarke, Angus Graham, Paddy Browne, Luke McCluskey, Adam Lamont (capt), James McClean, Josh Dobbin.

Replacements: Matthew Wright, Callum Mustoe, David Milford, Lee Montgomery, Alexander Carson