Limavady Grammar face Foyle on Saturday

On paper, Limavady Grammar appear to be favourites to take the win after defeating Foyle by a significant margin earlier in the year but, as head of PE Stephen Barr is quick to point out, previous results count for nothing once the Cup gets underway.

Mr Barr said: “Our team this year - on paper at least - looks quite strong and 11 of them are back from last year. This is the bulk of the team that played in the medallion cup final two years ago.”

Asked whether there were particular Limavady Grammar players worth keeping an eye out for in Saturday’s match, Mr Barr said: “Well, Brian McLaughlin, the Ulster Academy coach, watched our game against Armagh recently. Prop Rory Squires has played for the Ulster Schools Side. He’s just back from a cruciate ligament injury so we are all very glad to have him back.

“Brian McLaughlin was very impressed with number eight Sam Mackey. He was very impressed with my own son, Michael Barr, who is our centre and captain. There is also Daniel Miller in the second row. These guys are all on the radar at the minute.”

In terms of their overall chances for the Schools Cup, Mr Barr sounded an optimistic, albeit highly cautious note, saying: “We’ve been going along nicely. Saturday past against Armagh was our first defeat since Halloween. At the weekend we had a pre-cup camp in Sligo. We’ve tried to pick up a lot of hard games to prepare. We had the result a few weeks ago against CUS Dublin and they’re ranked ninth overall in Leinster. “Obviously we had the game against Armagh recently and that might have finished differently had we had a full strength squad available. These have all been hard games in the run-up to the cup.

“We’re confident overall, but it is always very difficult for a provincial school to get the whole way to a final. We managed a quarter-final last year but it can get very tough when you come up against some of the big Belfast schools with their directors of rugby and the resources they have available.

“Certainly, this weekend will be a real battle between ourselves and Foyle. A lot of the boys will know one another and they will be really looking forward to it. We have the home draw which seems to be important in the cup but there is no such thing as a guarantee.”

The last time the two sides met was in September, when Limavady Grammar School ran out 29-3 winners. However, Foyle have since been strengthened by the return of key players from injury.