The unseasonal weather didn't dampen spirits at the annual Ophir 
Sevens tournament in Mallusk on Saturday where Queen's secured the 
Will Totten Memorial Trophy for the second time in three years.

Eleven sides battled it out in difficult conditions at The 
Cottonmount, with Queen's and defending champions Academy topping 
their respective groups. 

The students cruised past Bangor 31-5 in their semi-final, while 
Academy had a 19-7 win over Carrick to secure their place in the 
decider.

Despite an evenly contested first half, Queen's took charge of the 
final in the second period, eventually running out 39-7 winners.

Trophies were presented to the winning team by Mayor of Newtownabbey, 
alderman Nigel Hamilton, who expressed his admiration for the efforts 
of all the teams who took part.

Earlier in the day Ophir staged a Youth Sevens competition for the 
first time involving U18 sides from the host club, Carrick, Lisburn, 
Randalstown, Cooke and Belfast Harleqins.

Lisburn, Cooke, Randalstown and Ophir contested the semi-finals, with 
a strong Randalstown side taking the trophy in a close final against 
Lisburn.

Despite the wet weather and difficult conditions, sides in both the 
junior and senior tournaments produced some impressive, running rugby 
that kept the spectators entertained throughout a damp afternoon.
Officials at Ophir RFC expressed their thanks to sponsors 
Newtownabbey Borough Council, Kukri and Biffa for their help in making the event 
such a success.