MY CLUB: MALAHIDE RFC
Estuary Road,
Malahide,
Co Dublin.
By DAIRE WALSH
FRESH from their magnificent Leinster Junior League Division 1A title win in mid-March, Malahide RFC began their quest for Ulster Bank League qualification away to Omagh in last Saturday’s opening round of the Provincial League Championship.
Malahide, who will also face Clonmel and Ballina in the Round Robin qualifiers, were only promoted from Leinster League Division 1B last season, but with former Shannon flanker John Shine leading by example, club chairman Alun Brophy feels they have become a force to be reckoned with.
“We won 1B last year. It’s a side that has been building now for three or four seasons. I think we’ve gotten stronger each year, after players have got a little bit more mature. It was a fabulous achievement for them to actually come straight up, and win it [the Division 1A title] at the first time of asking,” said Brophy.
“This is John’s second year with the club, and I suppose we made the call at the start of the season to make him captain. His experience, and his ability to pass that experience on to the lads, has been a major, major difference for us this year.”
Originally a member of Clontarf Rugby Club, Brophy linked up with Malahide more than 20 years ago. He is currently in his first year as chairman of the Estuary Road outfit, having completed a two-season stint as president.
“I was president for the past two seasons, so I just took over as Chairman this year. I started my rugby career in Clontarf, but we’ve lived in Malahide since 1977. Basically, I think my final year of my accountancy exams, I decided to come play for Malahide, rather than playing with Clontarf that season.
Vibrant
“With the intention of maybe just doing one year of it and maybe heading back to Clontarf. I never have headed back to Clontarf! That would have been ’93’ or ’94, and I’ve been with the club ever since then.”
With state-of-the-art facilities and a blossoming underage structure, Malahide appear to be well placed to cope with a potential move up to senior rugby. Brophy believes they are a club that are moving in the right direction, and that there is now a clear path for young players to progress up to the adult ranks.
“I think we’re definitely a club with the right sort of trajectory. It’s not just in senior rugby, our mini and youths section is growing every year. If you looked at the club say 10 years ago, there wouldn’t have been a pathway for a player to come all the way through the club,” he explained.
“Now we’ve actually developed to such a way that a player can actually start with Malahide as a five-year-old, make his way all the way up through to senior level, and continue to play with the club every year.”