Athy aiming for first Towns Cup final since 1991
Athy senior rugby captain, Tadhg Foley is looking forward to their Towns Cup semi-final against Tullow RFC on Sunday afternoon.
The Carlow side are back-to-back winners of the competition and Foley is under no illusions of the task ahead of Kildare side.
“Tullow are back-to-back champions, they aren’t that for no reason. They are a good team, but we have a great chance. They have a lot of big ball carriers. We respect them because they are very strong but we have a really good chance of winning the game.”
The game on Sunday will be part of a double header with the other semi-final between Carlow RFC and Wicklow RFC, with both semi-finals taking place at Cill Dara RFC. Foley believes that this is a good idea.
“I think it’s good that it’s on in another Kildare club, it’s good for Kildare rugby. With the two games as part of a double header it will mean there will be more neutrals at the game. I’m sure there will be a lot from Cill Dara at it, and obviously Carlow and Wicklow people. Tullow have huge support so they will travel, and in fairness we have been getting great crowds. When we played them in the league, it was like a Towns Cup semi-final, there were a couple of hundred there.”
The Athy captain says that his side are extremely young and that this cup semi-final will be a brilliant experience for the side.
“We have a lot of young players. We have a very young side. I’m 28, and I’m the second oldest in the squad. It will be a brilliant experience for the lads to play in a game like this and play against a team like Tullow. The average age of our team is around 21.”
Foley hopes that getting to this semi-final can inspire the next generation of Athy adult rugby players.
“There’s a great system there with youths and minis and hopefully many of them will go onto play rugby at senior level with Athy. GAA is obviously big in the town and so is soccer. Rugby has been so successful in the last few years as well, so I think that will keep players playing rugby. The town is a great sporting town with the different sports.”
It is expected that former Irish rugby international, Sean O’Brien will line out for Tullow this weekend and Foley is looking forward to playing against the former Leinster star.
“He didn’t play their last game, I think he was struggling with an injury, but we expect him to play this weekend. He’s obviously a brilliant player, and it’s great for junior rugby that he’s playing. It’s a brilliant experience for us to play against a former professional player like him and we are looking forward to it.”
Athy have had a difficult route to this semi-final. Despite a bye in the first round, they defeated Gorey in round 2 in a tough game, on a scoreline of 34-17. In the quarter-final, they defeated Dundalk in Dundalk, on a scoreline of 24-11.
Athy RFC will face Tullow RFC in the Leinster Towns Cup semi-final this Sunday at 2pm at Cill Dara RFC.
