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We are extremely proud to be supporting Malone RFC, who have played such a significant role in the rugby community both locally and nationally for over a century. At this time, Walsin and Malone make a great team as both are aiming high; Malone on their rugby journey and Walsin experiencing unprecedented growth to become one of the largest facade companies in Ireland. I have always had an interest in the sport, having played for my local club for many years and was delighted to be asked to get involved with Malone. Staff members regularly attend home and away games and there is a real buzz in the company around the club’s recent successes. So far we have been delighted to play a small part in the club’s ongoing refurbishment programme and will continue to support Malone RFC as it goes forward. Ian Sinclair, Managing Director, Walsin Ltd.
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A MESSAGE FROM KEITH MURRAY PRESIDENT MALONE RFC It is an honour and a privilege to be the 85th president of Malone RFC in our 130th year and I would like to warmly welcome everyone, particularly our visiting team, Old Wesley RFC for the 14th round in AIL Divison 1B. I am particularly delighted to welcome Nigel Poff, president of Old Wesley, and its travelling supporters to Gibson Park. Division 1B is proving to be a very competitive league and on their day any team can beat the other, it is so keenly contested. I trust the game today will be entertaining and injuryfree for all involved. Good luck to our 4th XV playing down in Donaghadee. As ever we are indebted to our sponsors, thank you on behalf of all our members. To our volunteers - you make all this possible and without you, there would be no Malone RFC. Each week you work tirelessly in the background and I would like to acknowledge this and thank you all. I would particularly like to mention all our Covid officers, led by Raymond Thomas, who have willingly managed to steer our club through these difficult times and keep everyone up to date with the latest rules and regulations. To all our supporters, families, and
friends I ask for 100% support and commitment for all our teams, and respect for the opposition and the officials. I would like to remind all match patrons of Malone RFC’s Code of Conduct and strict tolerance policy when it comes to abuse of match officials. When entering any ground please be on your best behavior and lead by example. Do not use profane language or harass referees, players or coaches. After today's game I want to welcome everyone back inside the clubhouse for some traditional Malone hospitality. Finally, I hope you all enjoy your day at Gibson Park, good luck to all the teams and I look forward to welcoming you again in the future. Keith Murray, President, Malone RFC
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OLD WESLEY Old Wesley Rugby Football Club was founded in 1891 from past pupils of Wesley College, Dublin. Since then it has bcome one of Leinster’s most famous Clubs. There were approximately 30 matches played over the first two years and in 1894 Old Wesley reached the final of the Leinster Junior Cup losing out to Blackrock. However, the Leinster Branch awarded the trophy to Wesley after Blackrock were deemed to have played an ’unfair team’. in 1895 Old Wesley played their first senior match, recording a draw against Wanderers. The early 1900s saw the club moving to grounds at Westfield Park, Harold Cross. As across Europe, the outbreak of war put a hold on rugby and when Old Wesley took the field again in 1919/20 they had moved to Donnybrook and in 1927 the pavilion at Donnybrook was sold to the Leinster Branch. The 1930s into the 40s were a time of progression for Old Wesley as the club grew stronger, but again, War put a hold on proceedings and after the war in 1947, improvements had been made to the Donnybrook pavilion and Old Wesley was now fielding six teams and was renting grounds for the junior teams at Kimmage. In 1951 the club made the Leinster Senior Cup final, losing out to Old Belvedere, and in 1955/56 a new ground at Brewery Road, Stillorgan was acquired. The 60s saw continual growth for Old Wesley with a pavilion extension and a bar installed at Donnybrook and by the end of the decade that bar was extended. The 1970s saw further growth and another extension at Doonbrook celebrated with a game against an International XV in 1972. In the 1975/75 season, Phil Orr gained his first Irish cap. By the time he retired in 1987/88, he had broken the records for the most capped Irish prop and the most capped international prop with 58 caps. In 1988 Old Wesley won the Smithwicks Floodlit Cup beating Terenure in the final. Their reward was a meeting with Bangor in the All Ireland Smithwicks Floodlit Trophy.
Bangor won 9-6 after extra time. At this time Old Wesley was providing players for Leinster on a regular basis and in 1990 four represented the club for Leinster against the All Blacks. Also in 1990 the 1st XV won Division 2 of the inaugural All Ireland League and gained promotion to Division 1. IN 1991/92 Old Wesley celebrated its centenary with Phil Orr as President. The highlight of the season was the match between Old Wesley and The Barbarians when Wesley became the first-ever Irish team to beat The Barbarians, who contained such names as Eric Rush. Pierre Berbizier and Tony Underwood. They won the 11 eleven try match in dramatic fashion with a last-minute drop goal to win 37-36. In 1995/96 Chris Pim captained Leinster and Ciaran Callan was the coach as Leinster picked up the Interprovincial Championship and reached the semi-final of the inaugural European Cup. In 1997 though, Wesley was relegated to Division 2 of the AIL and in 1999 they dropped to Division 3, however, they were promoted back to Division 2 in 2000 but came straight back down the following year. Work commenced on new junior grounds at Ballycorus and in 07/08 the grounds were opened and the Kilgobbin grounds vacated. In 2009, after eight years in Division 3, Old Wesley is promoted to Division 2 where they stayed until 2014/15 when they were promoted to 1B, winning 13 out of 15 games. 2016/17 saw double celebrations as Old Wesley celebrated its 125th year and the new clubhouse at Donnybrook was opened. 2018/18 saw Wesley lose to UCC in the promotion play-off final..
MINI MARVELS Mini Rugby at Malone has gone from strength to strength in the 2021/22 season since it's return post Covid lockdown. Nearly 150 children, both boys and girls from P1 to Year 8 are now registered with the club. Its great to see the mini players returning to sport and we’d like to thank all the parents for their continued support. We've also welcomed some great new Parents/Coaches to our younger groups building on the team already in place. The Minis train on Saturday mornings from 9.15am to 10.30am at Gibson Park. All new members, whatever your sporting ability, are always welcome, whether you're a rugby fanatic or just like the idea of the rough and tumble of the game. Why not come along and let the kids loose to give it a go!!
Malone RFC would like to remind all match patrons of the club’s code of conduct and strict anti-tolerance policy when it comes to abuse of match officials. When entering the ground, please be on your best behaviour and lead by example. Do not use profane language or harass referees, players or coaches. Players and referees are not fair targets for improper behaviour. Verbal abuse of players or referees cannot and will not be accepted in any shape or form. If you display this behaviour, you will be asked to leave the ground immediately. We ask all members to be vigilant and to comply with Malone’s code of conduct.
Be proud of your club and the game of rugby.
UPCOMING FIXTURES The Run-in SATURDAY 5th MARCH AWAY GAME
HIGHFIELD v MALONE 2.30 pm kick off Woodleigh Park
SATURDAY 26th MARCH HOME GAME
MALONE v OLD BELVEDERE 2.30 pm kick off Gibson Park
SATURDAY 2nd APRIL HOME GAME
MALONE v NAAS 2.30 pm kick off Gibson Park
SATURDAY 9th APRIL AWAY GAME
NAVAN v MALONE 2.30 pm kick off Balreask Old
Player Profile
Stewart is a relative newcomer to rugby having only started playing five years ago when he was 14. He started at his home-own club, Larne and when he progressed to Under 16 level he moved to Malone with a few friends. He soon caught the eye of the Ulster Under 18 selectors and was included for the Inter-provincial squad in 2020 but due to the pandemic, he never got to play in that series. Fresh out of the Under-18s this season, Stewart got an opportunity for some 1st XV game time and has made himself a permanent fixture on the squad. Everyone at Malone is delighted with his performances and are looking forward to watching his progression in a white shirt for many years to come.
A dander down The first half of the 1980s saw little development at Gibson Park apart from draining and reseeding of the top pitch in 1981. In May 1982 a serious fire caused major damage to the main hall and the opportunity was taken to improve the appearance of the room by lowering the ceiling. Towards the end of 1981, there was a new departure for the club when Jimmy Carnaghan was engaged as a full-time Bar Steward. It was estimated that one penny added to the cost of each pint would cover the cost! The 1st XV was enjoying reasonable success, finishing high in the Ulster Senior League and in 1984 winning the Ulster Senior Cup. by beating North 19 points to 12.
1984 Ulster Senior Cup winning squad.
The Ireland Saturday Night’s headline was ‘A Dinky Day as Malone win the Cup’. The team was coached by Dinky Dalton and scorers on the day were Willie Whelan and Stephen Cowan. Ian Brown converted one try and kicked two penalties while Colin Wilkinson dropped a goal. Stephen Cowan achieved a rare double that day as he had played on the Schools’ Cup-winning Grosvenor High School team the season before, scoring on that occasion also. The most successful team during this period was the Under 20 XV that won their league on three occasions 1981-84 The club playing record in the 1980s was one to be proud of. The 1st XV were regular runners up in the Ulster Senior League, the Under 20s were league winners, the 5th and 6th XV were league
winners and all other teams were regularly in the top three or four in their respective league. Cup competitions were also a success for the club with 11 trophies being won in this decade. The 5th XV won the Harden CUp on four occasions and the Forster Cup once. The seconds were successful in the Crawford Cup and the Past Players’ Cup and in 1988, now coached by Ralph Snowling, the 1st XV repeated their 1984 Senior Cup success when they beat Bangor 6-3 in the final. The captain that day was John McDonald. The 1st XVs consistency during this decade won them a place in Divison 1 of the newly formed All Ireland League. During this time nine players represented Ulster on a regular basis - Ian Brown, Stephen Cowan, Willie Duncan, Bill Harbinson, Denis McBride, John McDonald, Colin Morrison, Mark Reynolds, and Colin Wilkinson. Between 1983 and 1990 Willie Duncan, Denis McBride, and John McDonald all gained international caps, and McBride and McDonald, along with Colin Wilkinson also represented Ireland B. In 1989 Stuart Porter started for Ulster against the All Blacks at Ravenhill. Stuart represented Scotland B and went on tour to New Zealand with the full Scotland squad in 1990. Another fire in the mid-eighties put a hold on any further plans for development however, at a dinner to honour the longserving Jack Britton, Jack himself made a donation to the club to start a development fund. With this initiative, plans were drawn up and approved for a second storey to the club, and over the next few years, with the help of loans and a major club fundraising draw, the club grew upwards. Sadly in 1988, at the age of 91, Jack passed away, but with a substantial part of his estate bequeathed to the club, the new extensions were finished and opened, without ceremony, at the end of the 1989-90 season, in time for the first All Ireland league fixtures.
Next time: The 1990s
IN THESE YEARS
The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifts off in 1981
In 1981, the IBM Personal Computer is released
In 1985, the Live Aid concert is held in order to fund relief efforts for the famine in Ethiopia during the time Mengistu Haile Mariam ruled the country
MALONE 1. Ricky Greenwood
3. Aidan McSwiggan 2. Claytan Milligan 5. Stewart McKendrick
4. James McAlister
6. Dan Kerr
8. Zak Devine
7. Dave Cave 9. Conor Spence
11. Ben McCaughey
Captain
10. Callum Smith
12. Stewart Moore 13. David McMaster 15. Aaron Sexton
14. Rory Campbell
TEAM Old Wesley Highfield St Mary’s Naas Shannon Armagh Old Belvedere Malone Banbrdge Navan
PL 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13
W 12 9 7 8 6 6 5 2 3 2
L D PF PA DIFF B PTS 1 0 323 180 143 6 54 3 1 264 190 74 5 43 4 2 353 298 55 8 40 5 0 319 302 17 8 40 5 2 315 205 110 10 38 6 1 220 240 -20 4 30 8 0 270 305 -35 6 26 8 3 238 305 -67 6 20 10 0 228 301 -73 6 18 10 1 209 413 -204 4 14
Replacements: 16. Lawson Porter 17 Ben Halliday 18 Lee Barlow 19 Nathan Brown 20 Gareth Millar 21 John Creighton
Old Wesley 1. Harry Noonan 2. Ben Burns 3. Jacob Barrett 4. Iain McGann (c) 5. J J O’Dea 6. Will Fay 7. Josh Pim 8. Reuben Pim 9. Ben Murphy 10. Ian Cassidy 11. David Poff 12. Eoin Deegan 13. James O’Donovan 14. Thomas O’Callaghan 15. Alex Molloy Replacements: 16 Rob Byrne 17 Sam Kenny 18 Alastair Hoban 19 Brendan Monaghan 20 Paddy McKenzie 21 Charlie O’Regan
Schools outreach continues
Malone’s CCROs, John Gibbons and Holly Brannigan have been visiting schools in and round he local area to introduce rugby and encourage participation in the sport to new players. John has been working with pupils from Lagan College, Our Lady and St. Patrick’s, Orangefield Primary and St. Genevieve’s Primary, while Holly has been working in Ashfield Secondary, Grosvenor Grammar and Wellington College. They have been having great fun working for Malone and are being encouraged by
seeing some of the players starting to filter through and turn up at training for our youth and mini squads. John and Holly are also learing a bit more about the sport from being on the other end of the coaching ticket and would like to thank the club’s Rugby Committee for setting up the programme.
With the women Malone women have had a difficult Womens’ All Ireland League Conference campaign. The women lost narrowly to Ballincollig at home in the first game and then came out on the wrong side of a 46-5 scoreline away to Suttonians. The Ballincollig game was a tight affair. Emma Joran, Jill Stephens, and Holly Brannigan scored for Malone, while Holly Brannigan the lone scorer at Suttonians Another close home defeat (12-13) to Wicklow followed a penalty on the hour to the visitors proving the deciding factor before a 41-0 defeat away to Galwegians. Saturday’s derby loss to Cooke will have hurt the squad and they take on Cooke this Saturday at Gibson Park in the final Conference League game of the season looking to even up the bragging rights for the season. They will be looking to improve on performances they build towards their Engrgia Shield semi-final with Cavan.
MALONE WOMEN VS
COOKE
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
Sarah Murphy Ashleigh Currie Katie-Anne McCallion Hannah Beattie Jennifer Collins Rebecca Greenaway Cara O’Neill Lauren Maginnes Shirelle Wilson Peita McAlister (c) Anna Stanfield Jill Stephens Jana McQuillan Nicole Rafferty Holly Brannigan
Subs: 16. Donna McGovern 17. TBA 18. TBA 19. TBA 20. TBA Holly Brannigan - in try scoring form.
The Coach’s Corner We return to Gibson Park today after an extremely disappointing and poor performance against Banbridge last week. The squad has been honest in their review of the game. The performance was not acceptable for this group of players. We look forward to a muchimproved performance against the league leaders today. We are under no illusion of the challenge ahead today, and going forwards into the last five games of our AIL 1B campaign. We must start winning games. We welcome Ulster players Stewart Moore and Aaron Sexton into the matchday squad. Aaron has been a great Malone-man this season with his top-class commitment and attitude. He has scored some wonderful tries and we look forward to some more today. Stewart Moore is a well-known face around the club, whether he is playing or not! It's his first appearance for the
club this season and we have no doubt it will be his usual all-action display. Injuries rule out Shane Kelly, Andy Bryans, Teigan Erasmus, and Harry Andrews today. We wish them a speedy recovery. Harry joined straight out of school from Ballymena Academy and has proved to be a fine young player. We hope to have him back before the end of the season. I would like to congratulate the everyoung Max Porter on his recent marriage and look forward to welcoming him back to training when allowed. William Leacock
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With Malone’s Adam McNamee featuring in this year’s Under 20s Six Nations, along with a host of other promising talent, we take a look at one of the most productive crop of players that Ireland has produced
THE FASCINATING JOURNEY OF THE 2012 IRELAND U20 RUGBY TEAM No other Irish U21 or U20 squad has produced as many Lions as the squad from 2012. Not only were there Lions in the 2012 crop, but there was also an ensemble of talented athletes who would go on to play international and provincial rugby. One obvious area of interest was the out half situation. There were four prospects, one from each province, all looking to claim their place in the 23 - Paddy Jackson, JJ Hanrahan, Cathal Marsh, and Jack Carty. Jackson was Ulster’s messiah, JJ was a talented footballer from Munster who could slot in at centre. Cathal Marsh, a St. Michael's College old boy, and Jack Carty, who was fourth in the pecking order. The U20s Six Nations began with an 11-6 victory over Wales. Jackson and Hanrahan started at 10 and 12. Of the future Lions, Iain Henderson and Jack Conan started at lock and number eight respectively, with Tadhg Beirne among the substitutes. The next match was a hard-earned 13-12 victory over France, followed by straightforward victories over Italy and Scotland. It set up an away trip to England and a chance at a Grand Slam. Ireland was soundly beaten 20-9 by an English side that included future Lions Anthony Watson and Kyle Sinckler, and future Ireland and Ulsterman, Will Addison, starting at 13. Carty did not feature in the tournament, and Beirne was only afforded a single start. The squad for the 2012 World Championships was named in May, with Tadhg Furlong included. Luckily for Carty however, he was called up to replace Jackson. Jackson was ordered to stay home by new Ulster coach Mark Anscombe as he was needed for Ulster’s pre-season preparation. The squad featured many notable names who would go on to have fine careers, and who are still adding to their CVs. At scrumhalf, there was an ongoing battle that continued for years - Luke McGrath and Keiran Marmion. The backline also included Munster and Ireland centre Chris Farrell, and ex-Leinster man Barry Daly. Ireland’s pack had other familiar names like Niall Scannell and Ulster stalwart Alan O’Connor. Leinster flanker Conor Gilsenan played for Leinster, Connacht, and London Irish before being forced into retirement in 2020 at the age of 27. You may have spotted him on television recently in BBC’s The Apprentice.Ireland’s opening game in
Chris Farrell (above) and Tadgh Beirne playing for the 2012 Under 20s
the Junior World Championships was against the hosts, favorites and eventual winners South Africa South Africa’s starting XV boasted the likes of Pieter Steph Du Toit, Steven Kitshoff, Jan Serfontein, with Handre Pollard on the bench. The game turned out to be remarkable in many ways. It was one of the greatest Irish underage wins of all time, as we witnessed a generation of players come of age, and it was littered with performances that will go down in U20s lore. Tadhg Furlong matched up against Kitshoff. Iain Henderson also emerged as one of the brightest prospects in Ireland. However, the stand-out player of the team would turn out to be Munster’s JJ Hanrahan, who was only slotting in at 10 due to the absence of Jackson. He lit up the game and the tournament and led Ireland to a 23-19 win over South Africa. He was rewarded with a nomination for young player of the year,. Ireland would lose to England in what was a cruelly tough group, and miss out on a place in the quarter-finals. Of the four out halfs, Carty was number four. He is now the only one with Ireland prospects. Hanrahan never reached the heights of the summer of 2012 again but is enjoyed a successful stint at Clermont Auvergne, and has just announced a move to the Dragons. Of the future Lions, only Henderson, Furlong, and Conan all stood out. Beirne played in Henderson’s shadow that tournament before he then embarked on one of the most interesting journeys of any current Ireland international. His story of rejection at Leinster and redemption at Scarlets has been well documented, and he is now one of the best players in the world. With Ireland’s 2022 U20s Six Nations in full swing it will be interesting to see if any of the current crops will have as interesting careers as the 2012 vintage.
POTTINGER’S ENTRY, BELFAST