Hog Roast event brings rugby season to conclusion at Eaton Park

For the first time, the function was preceded by a match.

The two teams were made up from Ballymena players from the First XV right down to under-19 level.

The ‘dream team’ was made up of players that made the short list for their team’s player of the season award.

The remaining players comprised the President’s XV.

The game started with big smiles on the players’ faces and this set the tone for the rest of the game.

It was an open game with plenty of running rugby.

Both teams exchanged tries and the first half ended 12-12.

At half time both teams made a number of changes but this did not spoil the flow or the game with both sides running tries in for fun.

The game finally finished with the dream team coming out on top by six points.

After the game the players went inside the club house were they were joined by over 100 supporters and members for some well deserved food and drink.

Rory Drysdale captained the ‘dream team’ and collected the Ballymena Shield on his team’s behalf.

The dream team man of the match was prop Adam Smith who produced an intercept try during the game, while the President’s team man of the match was Ian Caldwell.

This night topped off what has been a great season for the club.

The First XV gained promotion at the first time of asking back to AIL Division 1B and pushed Ballynahinch all the way in the Ulster League, where they finished runners-up.

The Seconds were runners up in their league and were unlucky not to progress into the Towns’ Cup final.

The Third XV had a strong campaign, finishing mid-table.

The Fourths took the league to a play off, narrowly losing to Carrick as well as making the Forster Cup semi final.

The Fifth XV were undefeated winning the league, Forster cup final and the Harden cup.

The youth sides at ballymena also had a good season, showing that Ballymena have one of the best development set ups in Ulster.