UCD and rivals Trinity prepare to do battle for AIL top-flight status

AIL Division 1A Promotion/Relegation Playoff Final: UCD v Dublin University, UCD Bowl, Saturday, 2.30pm

Never has a “colours match” had quite so much riding on it and this shootout for top-flight status is expected to draw the game’s biggest attendance since International Students Day in 2015 when 5,000 packed the Bowl.

Past alumni have flown home from far and wide, while the weather forecast is set fair. Even last February’s meeting drew 2,500 on an awful night in College Park. UCD won 19-13, but they only had eight and Trinity six of these line-ups, whereas now they’re fully loaded bar injuries.

UCD’s academy fullback Ruben Moloney (quad) has been sidelined, so Charlie Molony moves there as speedster Maxim Aschenbrenner returns. Dan Barron moves to lock and Oran Handley is promoted in the absence of Dylan McNeice (shoulder). Trinity are unchanged, with Ireland under-20s fullback Noah Byrne still sidelined.

Talent abounds in two young sides and the depth of quality outhalves in is emphasised by the respective 10s here. A year ago, Paddy Clancy was steering Blackrock to the Leinster Schools Cup, and he is one of 19 products of the school involved this game, while Matty Lynch, a former Dublin minor, was Trinity’s saviour in beating Cashel to avoid relegation.

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The provinces and rival clubs will be observing too. The ramifications for retention and recruitment are enormous. As UCD coach Emmet MacMahon puts it: “The colours match is our biggest game against our biggest rivals, so it doesn’t get any bigger than this.”

UCD: Charlie Molony; Daniel Hurley, Andrew Osborne, Ben Brownlee, Maxim Aschenbrenner; Paddy Clancy, Thomas Quinn; Tom O’Riordan, Duinn Maguire, Sami Bishti, Dan Barron (capt), Donnacha Maguire, Oran Handley, Conor Tonge, Paul Gerard. Replacements: Lucas Maguire, Max Doyle, Jack Spencer, Michael Colready, Oisin Spain, James Sherwin, Daragh Gilbourne, Evan Moynihan.

DUBLIN UNIVERSITY: Davy Colbert; Johnny O’Sullivan, Hugo Lynch, Mark Walsh, Hugh Goddard; Matty Lynch, Oscar Cawley; Karl Brennan, Jack O’Neill, Arthur O’Rahilly, Michael Walsh, Artur Smykovskiy, Kevin Jackson, Conall Henchy, David Walsh (capt). Replacements: Jack Pollard, Johannes Dreischmeier, Hunter Deane-Johns, Jack Reilly, Max Dunne, Conor Tracey, Zach Quirke, Alex Finlay.