Provincial Towns Cup 1st Rd

Gorey v Mullingar

The Provincial Towns Cup trophy is one of the oldest trophies in existence. It was purchased in 1892 for £25 from Wests in Grafton Street, Dublin. The Cup bears the title of Leinster Junior Challenge Trophy but it is not as old as the competition itself, which was established way back in 1888. For Leinster Clubs this is therefore an extremely special tournament and is the pinnacle of their rugby calendars. A good run in the Provincial Towns Cup is much sought after by Clubs and, for a player, winning a Provincial Towns Cup medal is a career highlight. For supporters too this is the competition that is the most anticipated each year as it brings out the best of what the provincial game has to offer in terms of application, enthusiasm & pride. 30 Clubs have entered the 89th Provincial Towns Cup and 1st round fixtures will be played on Sunday 26th January, with 2:30 pm kick offs. This year the competition is again sponsored by Ciaran O Brien and the team in Cleaning Contractors.

Getting a home draw in this competition is of huge importance and, thankfully, Gorey RFC were fortunate to get that home draw which is against Mullingar RFC. This fixture is on the verge of becoming a derby match as it will be the 3rd time the teams have met this season. The previous encounters took place in Division 2A of the Leinster League - Gorey lucky enough to have come out on top on both occasions. In keeping with a typical derby match there was a fair degree of ferocity in these recent matches & Mullingar will certainly be making the journey down to the South East full of serious intent. Given that both sides now know each other so well it will give this Cup fixture a little more interest if it were needed.

Gorey RFC had a fantastic run in this competition last year, with some real giant killing games, and were very unlucky to go out when they did - a very narrow defeat away to Cill Dara RFC. Their League form this year has been outstanding, they remain unbeaten and are on the verge of League success. What better way then to be in the right mindset to have a really good crack at the Towns Cup in 2014? The Club are hoping to have a huge crowd to cheer on the Boys for this fixture as there is little point in having home advantage if we are not going to make good use of it. Tullow RFC are bringing their Mini teams to Gorey RFC that morning, for what are always tough competitive fixtures, so the rugby spectacle in Clonattin will have an early start. The Club would be delighted to have our Mini players & their families, who are present at the morning fixtures, to stay & support the Seniors in their vital fixture. We strongly encourage players from all age grades & all of our Supporters to get out in big numbers & create a really good Cup atmosphere.