Playing at the Dexcom is 'the pinnacle'

For any rugby player club in the West of Ireland, playing at the home of Connacht Rugby is, in the words of Ballina RFC president Daragh Quinn, the pinnacle.

Legendary players from the club have gone on play for Connacht or Ireland, including Dave Heffernan and Caelan Doris. The reputations Harry West and Fiachna Barrett continue to grow while Daragh’s niece, Eilish, has recently appeared for the Irish women’s team, and Daragh will be filled with pride watching the club close to his heart play in the newly-revamped Sportsground, now called Dexcom Stadium.

“We haven't actually played in the new Dexcom now so again this will be new territory as well. We played in the Sportsground on quite a number of occasions and have been fortunate to have won the Connacht Junior Cup and various Connacht leagues there over the years. We’ve won the Connacht Senior Cup there as well, back in the late 70s and in the 50s. This is new territory for us,” Daragh told the Western People.

“[The side is] all actually local lads who have mostly come up through the system in Ballina, having started at mini rugby, under-7 or under-8 and progress through youth teams to senior teams.

“It's wonderful for them to get the opportunity to play at the Dexcom where you’re seeing the provincial team playing there and all the stars that go with it.” Daragh has watched a side with a healthy mix of talented youth and experienced heads this season close up. While there was a league semi-final loss to Creggs and defeat to Tuam in the Connacht Junior Cup, they have also won the Cawley Cup and now stand 80 minutes away from a provincial title.

“We lost to Tuam in the first round of the cup, which was rather unexpected because we had played league matches through the years and we actually played Tuam before Christmas and beat them by just over 50 points.

“Perhaps our guys a little bit underestimated the opposition on that occasion. But Tuam, in fairness, have gone on and they're in the Connacht Cup final at this stage. We're in the Plate final, but our guys are really buoyed up for us.

“Coaches Mickey Murphy, Aidan McNulty, Richard Morrill have done a great job coaching the players all season. They played seven league matches and won seven league matches in addition to having won the Cawley Cup earlier on in the year. They're in a good place.

Daragh added: “The team have really battled right through the season, played wonderful rugby and entertaining rugby from start to finish. Even the match that they did lose to Creggs in the league semi-final, that was an end-to-end game which was decided by a kick in the last second of the game.

“We have a great mix of promising young players who have developed over the course of the season and that's mixed with the experience of captains, Luke Sweeney, Sean O'Connell, Calum Quinn, Gary Kavanagh, Ronan Molloy, all of whom have been stalwarts to the club for the last seven, eight, ten years.” 

Ballina’s large support will make the trip to Galway on Easter Monday, and Daragh hopes the team can deliver. Not just for himself as club president, but for the hundreds of volunteers who do so much for the club.

“We have a wonderful club here. We have players coming from Erris to Easkey and Dromore West and Swinford, Carrowmore-Lacken, Kilcommon and all over. It's a huge area, all of North Mayo and West Sligo, and for all those people who put in so much time and effort.

“The volunteers who do so much, parents who bring children along to Mini Rugby, the mums and dads who help out, making sandwiches after matches, they do so much coaching at underage and all the way through.

“It's for those people, that's who I would really love to see a victory and to bring silverware home.

“Any silverware, it's always appreciated. It's always to be played for. That's what you strive for.

“Our guys play with a great spirit, great enterprise. They bring joy to so many people on the sideline and to themselves. To see the craic, to see the buzz that they get out of playing and winning and just achieving for themselves.”