4XV return to League action with a win

Ballymoney 4s set sail to play City of Derry 3s in the first return fixture after the break and it was definitely a game where cobwebs were blowing. City of Derry started strong, and with weak defence on the blind side, the hosts scored on the 8 minute mark to take the lead 7-0. There was grit and determination from Ballymoney to get points on the board; good forward play got them into the Derry 22 but rusty ball handling resulted in missed chances and saw City of Derry clear their line.

The game was slow with penalties and scrums, and Derry missed their opportunity to extend the lead with a penalty. Ballymoney hung on and got their reward with Martin Murray crashing over the line, and converted by James Cleland, to make it 7-7 with ten minutes left in the half. City of Derry made a good break on half way but last ditch cover tackle by Dean Kerry stopped their momentum and Ballymoney turned over the ball. The hosts had a scrum on the 22 and their number 8 went blind to score with a conversion leave it the first half 14-7 to Derry.

Ballymoney received the ball from the restart and played territory down in Derry’s 22. This allowed the forwards to set good phase play and allowed young Harry Orr to crash over to score a great forward try; another conversion by Cleland bringing score level 14-14. The game got loose and both sides had breaks but didn’t materialise to score. Impatience on City of Derry's part saw them settle for a drop goal to make it 17-14. With Ballymoney chasing and Danny Platt in the sin bin for 10 minutes, Ballymoney relied on the experience of Jonny Hanna and Sam Bartlett to slow the game and secure ball.

Platt returned to the field on the 78th minute to prove his worth, and that he did with a final minute break down the blind side like a gazelle to hand off the covering defence to score a great try to take the lead and the conversion by Cleland made the final score 17-21 to Ballymoney. It was another great victory on the road and the unbeaten run continues into the new year for Ballymoney 4s.