Waterford City Aim To Continue On Recent Success

13th September 2013 By Munster Rugby

Waterford City Rugby Club celebrates its 120th year in 2013 and so far it’s been one to remember.

This year the club’s senior men’s team gained promotion to Division 2 of the Munster Junior League following eight long seasons in Division 3 which they were relegated to in 2005. The squad continued their winning steak by "Waterford claiming the Munster Junior Bowl for the very first time in their history with a comprehensive 22-0 win over Scariff in Thurles. Waterford City’s Junior 2 side also had a strong league campaign with some fantastic performances and came agonisingly close to retaining the Ballyrandle Cup only to lose out in the dying minutes of the game.

These achievements can be credited to the work ethic of the players and in no small part to Head Coach Peter Jones who has developed the squad over the past twelve months working himself tirelessly to ensure the players reach their potential on the field.

“After taking over as coach at the start of 2012/13 season, I've been delighted with the progress the club has made at all levels. Last season was extremely successful not only for gaining promotion and winning silverware, but also for establishing a positive senior squad ethos that permeates throughout the club. This was evident last season which saw an average of 29 players at our 81 training sessions which included 55 players who wore the Waterford City jersey with pride. Having reached our target of promotion last year, we aim to continue to build a senior team which caters for all members of our training squad whilst developing skill levels and game understanding.”

Waterford City are confident their success last season is a stepping stone to better things in 2014 and Jones feels that the right people have been put in place to take the club to the next level. “I would like to acknowledge my skipper Dave O’Connor and Team Manager Donal O’Brien who have been instrumental in ensuring that we continue to develop. Our objective is to make sure the players gain the rewards on the field for all their work off the field and we look forward to a successful campaign for the coming season.”

With rugby development at all levels being the prime focus for the club’s success Waterford City fielded their first women’s team in 2010. They have also experienced great victories over the past few seasons in the Munster Development League.

Huge strides have been made also at the Club’s mini and youth level which now sees teams competing at every age grade from Under 7’s all the way up to Under 18’s. Player recruitment has been challenging for the club due to local competition with other sports however the continued hard work from their underage committee has ensured the development and retention of young players.

Jason Power, Club President who was recently elected for the season taking over from club stalwart Dixie Daniels said “This season we aim to build on the hard work put in by our coaches, players and committee. Our underage and ladies teams are getting stronger each year and our senior players have a big season ahead as a result of the success from last year. I have no doubt all our hard work during pre-season will pay off. Power also paid tribute to the Club’s Committee who behind the scenes have done tireless work to ensure the development of their facilities in Kilbarry. “Two fully floodlit pitches, new dressing rooms, scrum machines and a function room are but a few of the big projects that have come to fruition and we are currently formulating bigger plans in the foreseeable future.”