Rugby (Copy)

Rugby at Ballyclare High School offers exceptional and unique opportunities to boys and girls of all ages. The journey you go on as a rugby player with our school is first class. We provide challenging and fun training sessions, regular Saturday fixtures, playing against a range of schools from Ulster, Leinster and the occasional touring side always keen to play us. Our rugby programme is built on 4 Key Pillars for Development; Technical, Tactical, Physical and Mental Skills. We deem success that the players are staying in the game after their time with us.

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Schools Cup Winners

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Subsidiary Shield Winners

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U16 Ulster Shield Winners

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Ulster Schools Bowl Champions

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Girls Ulster Tag Rugby Cup Winners

In 2016 Ballyclare High School was selected as one of five schools, who have been identified as implementing a rugby program that focuses on the key elements of this initiative and are Ulster Rugby Academy Partners. The partner schools are regularly invited into Kingspan Stadium, the home of Ulster Rugby, for a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) training days and week-long courses during the summer where they will benefit from exposure to the Hughes Insurance Ulster Academy, Age-Grade pre-season programmes and the Ulster 1st XV pre-season programme. Commenting on the announcement of this new initiative, Head of the Hughes Insurance Ulster Rugby Academy, Kieran Campbell, said: “This partnership will support the schools as they develop their top level players, but it will also engage younger players as they step out on to a rugby pitch for the first time, so we hope it will have the dual result of ensuring talented players fulfil their potential while also encouraging participation at all levels throughout the schools.

We have annual Leinster fixtures with Wesley College, St Gerard’s and Blackrock College at relative age levels. Trips and tours are arranged to offer personal growing opportunities and to mix with folk from other backgrounds. Our most recent tour was in 2015 when our senior rugby took a development squad of 44 boys to New Zealand and Australia following this our Medallion XV visited Portugal and our year 8 tour to Dublin each year. We unfortunately had to cancel our 2020 tour to South Africa due to COVID 19.

We field a wide spread range of teams at year 8, Two teams at Year 9, 10 and a competitive Medallion year group who reached the Bowl final in 2019/20 season. Senior Rugby on Saturdays are primarily for 1st and 2nd XV, however we will complete 3rd XV fixtures when opposition are able to. Our 1^st XV have recently reached consecutive Subsidiary Shield finals in 2017 and 2018, winning the later Vs Down High. Our 2^nd XV and 3^rd XV are competitive in their respective competitions, 3^rd XV being victorious in the plate in 2019/20 season.

The 4 Pillars

Rugby at Ballyclare High School offers exceptional and unique opportunities to boys and girls of all ages. The journey you go on as a rugby player with our school is first class. We provide challenging and fun training sessions, regular Saturday fixtures, playing against a range of schools from Ulster, Leinster and the occasional touring side always keen to play us. Our rugby programme is built on 4 Key Pillars for Development; Technical, Tactical, Physical and Mental Skills. We deem success that the players are staying in the game after their time with us.

Rugby Fixtures 2025-2026

Rugby Gallery & Tours

Facilities

We are very fortunate to have 4 very well taken care of rugby pitches, a sports hall when required for indoor training and the opening of The Knox Gym in 2015 has assisted in our training, development and our conditioning. Rugby offers a strong discipline to life and assists in thinking skills, time management, organisation and life skills form dealing with high pressure scenarios.

Our Director of Rugby and 1^st XV Head Coach, Mike Orchin-McKeever, has been an Ulster Rugby Talent ID coach and Ulster U18 Schools’ Coach since 2018. Our aim at Ballyclare High School is that they have fun whilst learning about the game, become better and remain involved in the sport post Ballyclare high School.

The most important bit about rugby at Ballyclare High School is that we enjoy it!

Please click the link below for an IRFU and Ulster Rugby Case Study that was created for Good Practice here at Ballyclare High School Rugby

https://ulster.rugby/content/model-club-creating-club-and-school-rugby-connections-a-ballyclare-case-study

Weekly Training Schedule

Morning: Senior Squad Video 8:30am and Medallion Video 8:50am

Year 9 Games & after school at Hollinger Park (4:30pm finish)
Senior Squad on School pitch 1
Colts on School pitch 2

Partnerships

Each year, Ballyclare High School holds annual fixtures against Leinster opposition, specifically Wesley College from Dublin. For the Year 9 and 10 teams, the fixture takes place away in the 2018/19 season and will be reversed in the following season. The Medallion (Year 11) team competes for a cup, with the home fixture in the 2018/19 season and a reversed venue next season. The 1st XV team plays for a shield, with their home fixture in the 2018/19 season, also reversed the following year. The venue alternates each year, and the winners retain their trophy for 12 months. Additionally, St. Gerard’s School in Bray participates in a senior development blitz held three times a season. This blitz allows each school to host and travel twice, giving Year 12 boys the chance to regroup after playing across four senior sides, and engage in two short games in a blitz format.

IRFU Code of Conduct

Parents play a vital role in encouraging their child’s participation in sport. Often, it’s parents who first introduce their child to the game, and young people frequently express how much they enjoy having their parents watch and support them during matches.

If you have any concerns regarding an age-grade player, you or a Club Welfare Officer can click here to report it. The positive encouragement and support you provide is invaluable. Your behavior and the way you communicate with your child can significantly influence how they experience and enjoy the game.

Girls Rugby

At Ballyclare High School, girls’ rugby is an exciting and inclusive part of our sports programme. Our girls have the opportunity to develop their skills, build teamwork, and create lasting memories through friendly competition and fun events. Recently, we entered three teams in the Ulster Rugby Tag Festival, with girls from U13, U14, and U15 age groups taking part. It was a fantastic introduction for new players and a great way to refresh the skills of those who had played before.

The focus of our rugby programme is on fostering a supportive and familiar environment for all players, with teams kept within their year groups to encourage social bonding and growth. It’s a chance for every girl, regardless of experience, to enjoy the game, make new friends, and celebrate their achievements, whether it’s scoring their first try or playing against older opponents. The event also included some fun spot prizes and lots of laughter, helping to create an enjoyable and welcoming atmosphere.

As Ellie Wasson, a Year 11 pupil, said, "I really enjoyed the event and it was a great learning experience." Penny McWhirter, another Year 11 player, joined due to encouragement from friends and found the experience exciting and rewarding. Our Director of Rugby, Mr. Mike Orchin-McKeever, highlights the importance of the friendships formed through sport, noting how rugby can bond players in a unique way.

Girls’ rugby at Ballyclare High is all about growth, enjoyment, and inclusivity. We look forward to seeing more girls join, develop their skills, and continue their rugby journey with friends by their side.

Girls Tag Rugby

Abigail and I both started playing tag rugby in junior school at Ballyclare High. Growing up with brothers playing rugby, we both believed that this was our opportunity to dive right into rugby at school.

Throughout our time we participated in various events and competitions ran by Ulster rugby, for us to learn the rules of tag rugby, develop our game and socialise with other girls with the same ambition of playing rugby. This also meant that we went through triumphs at qualifiers but also many losses at finals and semifinals (just a couple) which made winning the tag rugby tournament in Cookstown even more rewarding in our final year.

We were given opportunities and encouragement for us to get involved with the world of rugby outside of school, through seeing how many different schools were willing to participate.

During our time playing in school we had multiple coaches like Mr McKeever, Mrs Jackson and Katie McCullough who contributed to our enjoyment and fulfilment in the sport. It also gave us time away from other sports that are more popular, and we realised how much rugby needed to be recognised for women as well.

For us, the chance to play rugby gave us the opportunity to define our leadership skills as co captains, with the ability to have a positive influence on not just our peers, but also younger pupils within the school.

Having started rugby quickly within joining school, we also saw the benefit of having older pupils influence and the encouragement of participated through those pupils and wanted to this give back.

The overall experience in rugby at school has helped us gain confidence and learn skills which can be taken into a wide variety of sports and general lifestyle.

For that we are thankful to Ballyclare high for the opportunity.

Neeve and Abigail

History of Rugby at BHS

Below you can explore The History of Rugby at Ballyclare High School, a book that charts the evolution of the sport in our school from its earliest beginnings through to our landmark Schools’ Cup victory and into the modern era. It highlights the traditions, milestones, and memorable teams that shaped our rugby identity, culminating in the exceptional Soper and Shaw era, which delivered an unprecedented period of sustained success across a decade. This history captures not just results, but the pride, passion, and legacy of rugby at Ballyclare High School.