TRINITY START SEASON WITH TRAINING CAMP
26/08/2009

Trinity have started the new season with their annual training camp this week in College Park. The students have been training twice a day, starting with fitness testing on Monday Morning (August 17^th.)  The sessions are focussed on individual skills or conditioning in the mornings at 11am, and unit and team play in the evenings at 6pm.

 

Playing numbers (Seniors and U20s) have been good with over 45 players attending the sessions. “We have several players with ‘repeats’ on exams – but otherwise the numbers are good for this time of year.” said coach Tony Smeeth. 

 

Trinity who took fifth in the AIBL 2^nd Division last season hope to go one or two steps further and make the play offs and top four this season. Smeeth added “as usual we have lost four or five starters to graduation, but look to have retained most of the squad from last year”. The Student Club had a very strong J1 team (2nds) last season who won the Leinster league J1 B section only losing one game all season, they hope to bring some players through from that very successful team.

 

Trinity start the AIBL season (October 3^rd) with a tough home encounter against Terenure College - still smarting no doubt from being relegated last season from the top Division. This season Terenure are coached by former Trinity stalwart ex Barnhall Ian Morgan which will add spice to an already vitally important game.

 

Apart from the main attraction of the AIBL, Trinity play their annual games with Oxford University. This season they also entertain one of the top University rugby clubs in the World from South Africa - Stellenbosh University. This game will be played on the eve of the Ireland /South Africa test in Croke Park. This is the second game in four years between these very famous University clubs, Stellenbosh winning the first encounter 34-23 in College Park.

 

This year the Oldest Continuous club in the World will be captained by open-side flanker Johnny Iliff who is studying medicine and has just returned from Ghana where he worked in a hospital for the summer.

 

The Trinity U20s also have their usual high expectations for the new season with the majority of the squad back from last season. Trinity remarkably are the only Leinster U20s squad, to win the much coveted All Ireland U20s Championship in the past ten years. They won it in 2003 and 2005, finalists in 2006, and semi finalists 2008. Interestingly only UCC, UL Bohemians and Trinity have won the championship in that period with Shannon RFC the only club to do so beating Trinity 15-14 in 2006.

 

With the CAO offers coming out on Monday, Trinity are beginning to learn which recruits have made it into College. At first glance they look to have the ingredients for another successful season, with several top Schools/Youths players looking to come in and play for their College.

 

 

 

 

 

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