Academy aim to secure semi-final place in Schools’ Cup

Standing in the Ballymena boys’ path is the formidable obstacle of Campbell College, who provide the opposition in this Saturday’s quarter-final at the Galgorm Road school (11am).

“First and foremost, we wanted a home draw - when you get to this stage of the competition, with only eight teams left, you can’t be too fussy about who you get, but to be drawn at home is a big plus,” Academy coach John Andrews told Times Sport.

“The way the draw has gone this season, it looks as though the semi-finals might be made up of four of the top six seeded teams so it’s a very strong competition this year.

“Campbell will be a difficult challenge but we’re looking forward to it.

“We hadn’t really clicked in the first half of the season but since Christmas we just seem to have hit a bit of good form.

“We also now have a full squad to choose from with Johnny McClelland and Matthew McMurray back from long-term injuries.

“They have been getting a bit of game time with the Second XV in recent weeks and they will be likely to play some part on Saturday,” added Andrews.