MY CLUB: GREYSTONES RFC
Dr Hickey Park,
Mill Road,
Greystones,
Co Wicklow
By DAIRE WALSH
THE 2017/18 season will see Greystones RFC returning to the third tier of the Ulster Bank League, after they were crowned Division 2B champions recently with a comprehensive 45-10 final day triumph over Old Crescent at Dr Hickey Park.
Greystones club Chairman Gary Nolan believes their promotion was just reward for their persistence in recent years, and felt it was extra special that Greystones were able to secure top spot ahead of close rivals Armagh on their home patch.
“It was five years ago that we were relegated to Division 2B, at a time when there were four divisions. Each year since relegation, we’ve been there or thereabouts. It’s been a long road, and a mixture of elation and relief that we finally got over the line this year,” admitted Nolan.
“I think the last couple of years we’ve been away in the last game, but to be at home is great. We had a huge crowd, probably the biggest crowd we’ve seen in five or six years. The stand and the terraces were packed out. It was truly a huge crowd. The whole community got in behind the match.”
Eleven try-scoring bonus points – and a terrific 19-try contribution by flying winger Jack Keating – helped the Wicklow men to edge out Armagh by just a single point after 18 games. Their divisional success seemed unlikely when they trailed the Ulster side by 10 points at the end of November, but Nolan identified a series of results at the beginning of 2017 as being crucial for Greystones.
“It was [close] at the finish, but we look back to [when] Armagh came to Greystones at the end of November, and beat us fair and square to pull a 10-point lead in the table. Armagh went to January unbeaten, but possibly the turning point was when Armagh were beaten by Wanderers on the back pitch of the Aviva.
“A couple of weeks later we travelled up to Armagh and inflicted their first home defeat. That turned the whole thing around. We left Armagh a point behind, and thereafter, it was a race for bonus points.”
Greystones will be returning to Division 2A for the first time since 2013, and Nolan is confident that Kevin Lewis’ young squad can compete in the higher division in the much the same way that Highfield and Naas have in recent seasons.
“In the Leinster Cup this year, we beat Old Wesley from Division 1B. We beat Blackrock from 2A. For next year, we’re only going to get better and stronger. The young players have really built on the experience of this year.
“We’re looking at really giving 2A a good go next year, with the full ambition of following Highfield, who came up last year and are in the play-off. Naas went through it a couple of years ahead of us, so we are fully intent of pushing at the top end of 2A next year,” Nolan added.