Dundalk Rugby Club will make their senior debut this Saturday when they host Bruff in Division 2C of the All-Ireland League at 2.30pm.
It will be former Skerries coach John Murphy’s first league match in charge of the side also as he takes over the reins from Ene Fa’atau, who has left for Galway Corinthians.
All support is welcomed on the day at the Mill Road.
Three members of Dundalk Rugby Club have been called up to the Leinster Junior squad for tomorrow’s clash with Connaught Juniors at the Garda RFC grounds in Westmanstown.
Johnny Williams, who scored a hat-trick of tries as the Mill Road men beat De La Salle Palmerston last weekend to earn promotion to the AIL next season, will start alongside place kicker Ultan Murphy while full back Stephen McGee will be on the bench.
Kick-off on the day will be at 2.30pm.
Following on from their huge recent successes Dundalk Rugby Club will host a celebratory dinner dance in the Crowne Plaza Hotel on Friday May 22nd.
Tickets, priced €35, are on sale now from any club member with the event getting underway on the night at 8pm with a prosecco reception.
Music on the night will be by The Stormers, followed by a DJ.
The Mill Road men won promotion to the All-Ireland League for the first time in the club’s history last weekend while they also won the Leinster League, All-Ireland Junior Cup and McGowan Cup this season.
Dundalk RFC will be playing senior rugby for the first time in their history next season following a 22-10 victory over De La Salle Palmerston in Dublin today.
Johnny Williams was the hero for the Mill Road men on the day with a hat-trick of wins in what was arguably the side’s most famous ever result.
The visitors got off to a dream start when Williams got in for his first try in the 12th minute after a good break through a ruck by player/coach Ene Fa’atau.
Ultan Murphy missed the resultant conversion but with De La Salle missing penalties either side of that score, Dundalk would have been happy with their early 5-0 lead.
Williams then added a second try in the 27th minute, running in from the scrum after the Mill Road men had initially been held up over the De La Salle line. Murphy did manage to convert on this occasion, giving his well-supported side a 12-0 advantage.
The home side did respond with a penalty before the break to cut the gap by to nine points but a further miss on the restart meant they failed to build any real momentum.
Their cause then went from bad to worse when they had a player yellow carded, with Murphy converting the penalty to leave it 15-3.
Williams then completed his hat-trick minutes later, with Murphy converting to leave it 22-3.
The dream day took a slight sour turn for Williams when he as yellow carded in the 57th minute, with Fa’atau joining him in the sin bin two minutes later.
That allowed De La Salle cut the deficit courtesy of a penalty try with 18 minutes to go, with their fly half converting to leave it 22-10.
Despite Murphy missing a penalty with 13 men on the field for the visitors, Dundalk held out well in the closing stages to earn an historic promotion and cap a dream year for the club, who also won the Leinster League, All-Ireland Junior Cup and McGowan Cup this season.
The biggest prize of all though is a place in the All-Ireland League.
Dundalk Rugby Club will play arguably the most important game in their history tomorrow when they travel to Kilternan in Dublin to take on De La Salle Palmerston in the All-Ireland League promotion/relegation play-off.
A victory for the Mill Road side will see them play senior rugby for the first time in their history.
Dundalk completed their Ulster Bank League Round Robin campaign with a 48-28 victory over Connemara in Clifden last weekend.
Following earlier wins away to Instonians and at home against Clonmel, Dundalk travelled west knowing that a win of any hue would deliver the Round Robin title and a shot at achieving AIL status.
And they were quickly off the mark racking up four tries through flanker James McConnon, out-half Jonathan Williams, winger Ultan Murphy and lock Mike Bentley to ensure the bonus point before the break as they established a 26-13 half-time advantage.
While the hosts managed three tries, Dundalk kept them comfortably at arm’s length. Full-back Stephen McGee, winger Owen McNally and Williams with his second, all touched down in the second half to set up the biggest day in the club’s history tomorrow.
Back in the 1980’s they came close to winning the old J1 League which would have seen them promoted to senior status and they were also the first winners of the Leinster League in 1994/95 but that was a year before the pathway to the AIL was created.
On the flip side De La Salle Palmerston are a well-established club with a proud history in the AIL, including briefly playing in Division 1 back in 1998/99 but tomorrow they are fighting for their senior survival and a tremendous battle is in prospect.
A number of buses are going to the game on the Glenamuck Road on Saturday and anyone who would like to attend should call 087 2795429 to book their seat.
Dundalk Rugby Club will play arguably the most important game in their history on Saturday when they travel to Kilternan in Dublin to take on De La Salle Palmerston in the All-Ireland League promotion/relegation play-off.
A victory for the Mill Road side will see them play senior rugby for the first time in their history.
A number of buses are going to the game on the Glenamuck Road and anyone who would like to attend should call 087 2795429 to book their seat.
Dundalk RFC will take on Enniscorthy in the semi-finals of the Provincial Towns’ Cup.
The game will take place at the Mill Road on Easter Sunday with Ene Fa’atau’s side hoping to repeat their success in pipping the Wexford men to the league title last month.
Clondalkin will face Kilkenny in the other semi-final.
Dundalk 2nds celebrate their Leinster League success in Enniscorthy
It was a day to remember for Dundalk Rugby Club as both their first and second teams clinched the league title in back-to-back games in Wexford.
The Mill Road men’s first team won the Leinster League Division 1B despite losing out to Enniscorthy on a 17-16 scoreline with their losing bonus point proving crucial in the end as the hosts needed to win by eight or more.
With the wind at their backs in the opening half, three Ultan Murphy penalties had Dundalk 9-0 up at the break but the home side showed they were not willing to roll over when they landed a converted try shortly after the restart to cut the deficit back to two.
A missed penalty from Murphy at that point looked like a big moment in the game but things seemed to turn in Dundalk’s favour when Enniscorthy’s Killian Lett was sin binned for a high tackle on Johnny Williams before great pressure from the try line saw John Smith get through for a try, which Murphy converted to leave it 16-7.
Enniscorthy refused to throw in the towel though with a try three minutes from the end, which Ivan Poole failed to convert.
They then added a second try right at the death to take the lead but Poole’s conversion at this stage mattered little as the league title was already Dundalk’s. Enniscorthy might have won the battle but Dundalk won the war as they landed only their second firsts Leinster League title following a similar success 20 years ago, adding to the All-Ireland Junior Cup title they already clinched earlier this year.
The second team had earlier won only their second ever Leinster League title after a 20-10 victory over Enniscorthy. Having led 11-10 at the break, the Mill Road side held their opponents scoreless in the second half to complete the first part of what proved to be a superb treble for the Club on the Hill.
Dundalk 1sts: Stephen McGee, Owen McNally, Chris Scully, Michael John McKevitt, Ultan Murphy, Jonathan Williams, Thomas Campbell; Jonathan Gray, Tu’ipulotu Nuku, Robert Farrell, Paul Meegan, Mike Bentley, James McConnon, David Whately, Ene Fa’atau.
Dundalk 2nds: Daniel O’Connell, Rory O’Hagan, Derek Williams, Chris McGeady, Aaron Kernan, James Shields, Simon Byrne; Kieran McCabe, Sean Arrowsmith, Will Lauaki, Robin McGee, Chris O’Hanlon, Laurence Steen, Ciaran Lennon, Tiernan Gonnelly.
Dundalk captain Michael John McKevitt lifts the cup at full-time
It was a weekend to remember for Dundalk RFC after they clinched the AIL All-Ireland Junior Cup title for the very first time with a comprehensive 55-5 victory over Bangor in Portadown on Saturday.
The Mill Road men got off to a flying start when Chris Scully crashed over for a try after just six minutes with Ultan Murphy converting to give his side a 7-0 lead.
Both sides then missed penalties before Scully turned provider for Owen McNally to go over for a second try on 21 minutes, with Murphy again converting to leave it 14-0.
Jonathan Williams then added a third try on the half hour mark but unfortunately on this occasion Murphy couldn’t add the extra two points as Dundalk took a 19-0 lead off at the break.
After Bangor had a player yellow carded 11 minutes after the restart, Ene Fa’atau’s side added a further try two minutes later through John Smyth with Murphy converting before adding a penalty minutes later to leave it 29-0 after 56 minutes.
Murphy then added a try of his own, which he converted, on the hour mark before James McConnon weighed in with another five minutes later, which again Murphy converted.
Tiernan Gonnelly then rowed in with another try in the 68th minute before Stephen McGee completed the scoring two minutes later with a converted try.
Bangor did manage a try of their own four minutes from time through David Charles but it was too little, too late for the Antrim men as Michael John McKevitt lifted the cup to rapturous applause at full-time.
Dundalk: McGee, McNally, Scully, McKevitt, U Murphy, Williams, Campbell; Gray, Nuku, Farrell, Meegan, E Murphy, McConnon, Whately, Fa’atau. Replacements: Smyth, Arrowsmith, Brannigan, Bentley, Gonnelly, Williams, S Murphy, Shields.
Dundalk’s Ultan Murphy lands a kick against CIYMS at the weekend. Picture: Andy Gray Photography
Dundalk Rugby Club will host CIYMS of Belfast in the replay of their All-Ireland Junior Cup semi-final this Saturday at 2.30pm in the Mill Road.
The replay was required after the two sides drew 25-25 with the East Belfast side coming from ten points behind in Belmont at the weekend to earn a second chance of a place in the final.
The hosts had led 15-7 at the break but Dundalk came out all guns blazing for the second half with a try and subsequent penalty bringing them level after 47 minutes.
Ultan Murphy’s penalty then fired the Mill Road men in front before a further try and conversion had Dundalk 25-15 ahead with just 22 minutes remaining.
A penalty from the hosts kept them in it, with their cause being helped when David Whately was sin binned late on.
Unfortunately for Dundalk CIYMS got in for a late try with their kicker Mark Scott holding his nerve to fire over the conversion to set up a replay this Saturday with extra-time not considered due to a lack of light.
All support is urged for what is arguably the club’s biggest match in years.
Talk of the Town 