Blackrock face old friends Belvedere

RUGBY LEINSTER SENIOR SCHOOLS RUGBY CUP:THE LEINSTER Schools Cup draw for 2010 took place at St Mary's RFC clubhouse off Templeville Road last night. It opens with a cracking encounter between old friends Blackrock and Belvedere College.

The defending champions, Blackrock, are an unknown quantity in 2010 as last year’s starting XV, four of whom have featured in the AIL for the club, was made up entirely of sixth year pupils who have all since graduated. Team captain Jordi Murphy, tighthead prop Arthur Lyons, Brendan Macken and Andrew Conway are the four to make this rapid progress with the latter two already ensconced in the Leinster Academy.

So, Blackrock will not be favourites for a change. Their neighbours down the other end of the Rock Road, St Michael’s, must be taken seriously having lost the Junior Cup final three years ago but only after a dramatic late try from the mesmerising Conway who, as noted, has moved on. St Michael’s centre Alex Kelly recently featured in the Irish under-19s side that beat Australia. He looks capable of making a serious impact at this level.

St Michael’s are pitted against Newbridge in the opening round with Castleknock their expected opponents next. Other genuine contenders are 2009 runner-up Terenure and Clongowes Wood College.

Clongowes were the best performers from Leinster in the recent tournament to celebrate Blackrock’s 150th anniversary, losing to powerful Ulster champions Methody in the final. They face Kings Hospital in the opening tie. With respect to Kilkenny, Roscrea, Gonzaga and St Mary’s look capable of progressing all the way to the final.

Terenure look set to continue their revival as a serious rugby nursery after a period in the wilderness was ended by last year’s final appearance. They are also celebrating their sesquicentenary and start their campaign against St Gerard’s School from Bray with the winners of Blackrock and Belvedere up next.

Calling it from this far out can be dangerous but the draw looks a little bottom heavy. It has never been seeded so some years the decisive collisions come early on. This appears to be the case here.

The hype surrounding the schools game remains as strong as ever. There is even an online fantasy league in the pipeline. Powerade remain title sponsors, while Setanta Sports are expected to set up camp in Donnybrook for all the big fixtures and, of course, the RDS Showgrounds for the final, presumably, taking place on St Patrick’s Day.

The Leinster schools committee are expected to announce the dates and venues later in the week. No decision has yet been made on whether the final will return to Lansdowne Road in 2011. The 19,000 capacity RDS has proved a decent home for the showcase event these past two years anyway.

In these heady times for Irish rugby the importance of the schools’ game remains as relevant as ever. A quick glance through the now immortal 22 that captured the Grand Slam in Cardiff last March reveals six players who learned their trade in this pressure cooker environment. They are: Rob Kearney, Gordon D’Arcy (both Clongowes Wood) Brian O’Driscoll, Luke Fitzgerald ( Blackrock), Geordan Murphy and Jamie Heaslip (Newbridge). In November Cian Healy (Belvedere) and Jonny Sexton (St Mary’s) made their Test debuts.

Junior Cup holders Terenure begin their campaign against St Mary’s.