COUPER’S TROOPERS TRIUMPH IN TAG SUMMER LEAGUE
Buccaneers Tag Rugby Summer League concluded with an exciting series of finals with Couper’s Troopers taking the top honours. Congratulations to all who participated especially the winners. Cup – Couper’s Troopers, Plate – RugBK, Bowl – Geraldine, Shield – RugBK2. Thanks to the corporate sponsored teams 3M Untaggables, RBK 1+2, and Alexion. Thanks too to Tom and Paschal in The Bounty for sponsoring the finals night refreshments. Special thanks to all the referees – Diarmuid Morrissey, Wesley Hudson, Adrian Hanley, Billy McMickan, Peter Walpole and Kieran Abrook. Finally, gratitude also to Lyndon Jones, Zoe Langsdale and all at Connacht Rugby and the Connacht Tag Series sponsors Laya Healthcare and especially to club president Brendan Wilkins who put in a trojan effort.
Finals night was an exciting affair with much anticipated match ups. In the Shield final the game finished tied and had to go to golden try for decision, with RugBK2 triumphing after 2 minutes. In the Bowl final, new entrants Geraldine, representing the pride of South Roscommon, saw through a closely fought match. The Plate final saw RugBK close it out, making a clean sweep for RBK in the corporate entries class. RBK have definitely set the standard for corporate teams in future years.
The Cup final was much anticipated between perennial contenders Couper’s Troopers and corporate raiders 3M Untaggables. 3M flew under the radar for much of the league until a stunning upset over Couper’s Troopers in Week 6. From that point on a showdown in the final seemed inevitable and so it came to be. Peter Walpole, new to refereeing at Buccs, took the whistle and expertly officiated an incredibly entertaining and well contested final. In the end Couper’s Troopers prevailed, with the number of female tries scored making the difference in the final score. Congratulations are again due to all the players and teams for an excellent and competitive league this year.
