AIL action returned to Eaton Park on Saturday as Shannon RFC made the trip north, renewing a rivalry that stretches back to the early days of the All-Ireland League in the 1990s. After suffering a heavy 41–10 defeat in the reverse fixture earlier this season, Ballymena were looking to make it honours even.
With the wind in their favour, Shannon made the brighter start. On nine minutes, they capitalised on a 22-metre lineout, working through several phases before crossing for the opening try to lead 5–0.
The response from the hosts was positive and opportunistic. Callum Patterson identified space in the Shannon backfield and produced a well-judged kick to the corner, forcing a defensive lineout just five metres from the visitors’ line. When the throw went over the top of the Shannon jumper, Callum Mustoe reacted sharply, gathering the overthrow and touching down to level the scores at 5–5.
The first half was an even encounter with both sides struggling to make decisive inroads. Shannon dominated territory with the wind at their backs, however Ballymena’s defensive efforts restricted any opportunities.
The decisive momentum shift came shortly after the break. An excellent attacking lineout on the Shannon 5-metre line saw the ball moved to Milford, who was stopped just short. McClean was quickest to the breakdown, picking and driving over to give Ballymena a 10–5 advantage.
As the contest tightened, Ballymena’s scrum earned a crucial penalty on 70 minutes. Joe O’Rawe calmly converted to stretch the lead to 13–5. Just a minute later, he stepped up again — this time from longer range — and split the posts to make it 16–5.
Shannon mounted sustained late pressure and were rewarded with a try on 78 minutes, narrowing the gap to 16–10 and setting up a nervy finish.
In a frantic closing passage, the visitors pushed hard in attack, but a massive midfield hit from the Ballymena defence forced a knock-on at a critical moment. From the resulting scrum, the Blacks kept possession and cleared to touch to secure a deserved 16-10.victory.
The victory was yet another demonstration of the confidence levels increasing within John Nicholl’s squad. The win against Shannon is the fifth win from six in 2026 and the young squad will be looking to push higher up the table with 4 games left in the regular season.
Next up is a trip to Wanderers this coming Saturday. Wanderers currently sit in 4th place, 4 points ahead of Ballymena who remain in 6th.
Team: Mark, Mustoe, Graham, Milford, McCluskey, P..Browne, McClean, Lamont, Davidson, O’Rawe, D. Millar, Patterson, Neely, Rotson, McBurney.
Subs: Wright, Mark, McCartney, Dobbin, Weerarathne
