Ophir VS Civil Service

On Saturday 12th August, Ophir's 1st preseason friendly took them to Stormont to take on local rivals Civil Service.

Match preparations had been put on hold after a number of players selected for the match were suddenly unavailable, leaving the rest of the boys up the creek without a paddle. With 22 players selected for the match, only 14 turned up on the day ready to face the horde of players that Civil Service appeared with.

Not letting the numbers game affect them, Ophir decided to try and take the game to Civil Service with a great kick off from Alan Davison, which allowed Ricky Burns to get under the high ball and hit the receiver just as his feet touched the grass. Unfortunately, the good intentions didn't last long as Civil Service crashed the ball up time and time again, gaining vital yards with every play. Ophir was not able to defend the continued onslaught and before long Civil Service was on the score board, and it kept ticking over.

Not having a full team or subs took its toll on the Ophir men. Civil Service, who did not want the game to descend into a scrap, sent one of their boys to bring the Ophir numbers back to full strength. This had an immediate impact with a little bit more possession, and some positive attacking display from Alan Davison who played a neat chip over the top into James Milligan's hands. Unfortunately for James his kick didn't pay off the same, but gave the Ophir boys some much needed territory. With a lineout that hasn't really developed this season, Ophir could not really contest the it. With a tiring defence, Civil Service scored a few more before the half finished.

The second half was filled with injuries. As Civil Service replaced any injuries, we had to keep the game running smoothly with a brief return to Ophir for Stuart Hooks. Hooksy brought some new life to the game and territory for Ophir. With the last 5 minutes approaching, after some great lines from the Ophir forwards, Stuart Hooks finally found a gap for James Milligan to crash over and the conversion was completed to give Ophir something positive to hold on to.

Final Score Ophir 7 - 76 Civil Service