Sport | Rugby Union |
---|---|
Founded | 1913 |
No. of teams | 7 (season 2023-24) |
Most recent champion(s) | Marist College, Athlone (2024) |
Most titles | Garbally College 42 |
The Connacht Schools Junior Challenge Cup is an under-age rugby union competition for schools affiliated to the Connacht Branch of the IRFU.
Competition is confined to students under the age of 16. The final is held in March each year in the Galway Sportsgrounds. It is usually seen as a good forecast as who will win the Connacht Schools Senior Cup in the following years.
Garbally College have been the most successful school in the competition lifting the cup 42 times. They are followed by St Joseph's College, Galway (10 times), Sligo Grammar School (7 times), Coláiste Iognáid, Marist College, Athlone and Ranelagh College (4 times) and Calasanctius College, Oranmore (2 times)
Marist College, Athlone have been the most successful team since the turn of the millennium winning the Junior cup Nine times (2000, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2016 ,2018, 2022, 2024).
The Connacht Rugby Schools Cup is a three tier competition.
The premier competition played by the strongest rugby playing schools in the region. Current competition format is two pools [A & B] of three teams playing each other round robin. The Winners & Runner Up in each pool proceeding to the Semi-Finals.
The two other tiers cater for schools who cannot consistently compete at Junior Cup level by reason of playing population or experience.
In total 30 Schools representing all five provincial counties participated in the various Connacht Rugby Junior Schools Cups in 2019.
Is the Second Tier Competition for schools with established Rugby programs but who due to lower playing numbers or do not have the high level of population experience to consistently compete at Junior Cup Level.
Nine schools compete in three pools of three, leading to semi-finals and a final.
Is the Third Tier Competition for Schools who have recently introduced Rugby programs within their schools.
Nine schools compete in three pools of three, leading to semi-finals and a final.
The target is for schools to establish themselves within the lowest tier initially, and progress through to the highest tier.
School | Outright Titles | Shared Titles | Runners-Up +1 | Total Finals +2 | Last Title |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Garbally College | 43 | 7 | 50 | 2019 | |
St. Josephs College Galway (The Bish) | 10 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 1991 |
Marist College, Athlone | 9 | 4 | 13 | 2024 | |
Sligo Grammar School | 7 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 2008 |
Colaiste Iognaid (The Jes) | 4 | 6 | 10 | 1987 | |
Ranelagh College, Athlone | 4 | 4 | 1929 | ||
Rice College | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2012 | |
Portumna Community School | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2001 | |
Calasanctius College, Oranmore | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2010 | |
Galway Grammar School | 2 | 2 | 1958 | ||
CBS Roscommon | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2020 | |
Summerhill College, Sligo | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2023 | |
St Geralds College, Castlebar | 1 | 1 | 2014 | ||
Clifden Community School | 1 | 1 | 1976 | ||
Galway Vocational School | 1 | 1 | 1969 | ||
St Muiredachs College, Ballina | 2 | 3 | N/A |
+1 Since 1989 (Excluding 1992-4) +2 Only counting wins and losing finals since 1989
Athlone is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midlands Region with a population of 22,869 in the 2022 census.
Coláiste Iognáid SJ, a bilingual secondary school, is located on Sea Road in Galway, Ireland. It was founded in 1645 and has had numerous locations over the years before its current home. The college is a co-educational, non-fee-paying secondary school and one of a number of Jesuit schools in Ireland. There are approximately 600 pupils in the school.
Oranmore is a town in County Galway, Ireland, 9 km (5.6 mi) east of Galway city on an inlet of Galway Bay. At the 2022 census, Oranmore had a population of 5,819.
St Jarlath's College is a Catholic co-educational secondary school in Tuam, County Galway. The college was founded in 1800 and in 2009 absorbed St. Patrick's College, Tuam. The College, which operates under patronage of the Archbishop of Tuam, is named after Jarlath, or Iarlaith, who founded a monastery in the town when, as legend has it, his chariot wheel broke. As of 2024, the enrolment was 625.
The Connacht School's Rugby Senior Cup is an annual rugby union competition for secondary schools affiliated to the Connacht Rugby Branch of the IRFU.
St. Joseph's College, Garbally Park is an Irish voluntary Catholic secondary school situated in Garbally Park, the former seat of the Earl of Clancarty, near Ballinasloe in County Galway. It is a single-sex boys day school which has previously served as a boarding school. It is more commonly known as Garbally College.
The Connacht Senior Cup was a knockout competition for senior rugby union clubs in the Irish province of Connacht, under the auspices of the Connacht Branch IRFU. The Cup has been played for a total of 102 times, with twelve different cubs having won the trophy during that period.
St. Joseph's Patrician College, often known as "The Bish", is a secondary school in the West Ireland city of Galway. Founded by the Patrician Brothers, a religious order, it has approximately 800 students on roll and, in recent years, has had success in a wide range of sporting activities including soccer, rugby, basketball, rowing, Gaelic games, athletics, and table tennis.
Daniel Riordan is a rugby union player for Old Belvedere in the All-Ireland League. He began playing rugby at Coláiste Iognáid, where he won a schools' senior cup in 2002 and was on the Connacht Schools team in 2000 and 2001.
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Michael Meehan is a Gaelic footballer from County Galway. Meehan plays his club football with Caltra and played county football for the Galway senior football team. He announced his retirement from inter county football on 21 March 2014 due to injury.
Sligo Grammar School is a private fee-paying co-educational boarding school located on The Mall in Sligo. The school has approximately 450 students of which approximately 100 are boarders. It offers the traditional Junior Certificate and Leaving Certificate courses along with Transition Year, which is compulsory. It is under Church of Ireland management.
John Geraghty is an Irish former Gaelic footballer who played at club level with Kilkerrin, Mountbellew–Moylough and Fr Griffin's and at inter-county level with the Galway senior football team. He usually lined out as a goalkeeper.
Tiernan O'Halloran is a professional rugby union player from Ireland. He primarily plays as a fullback or on the wing. O'Halloran currently plays for Irish provincial side Connacht in the Pro14.
Sport in Galway includes a diverse heritage, with a history in sports ranging from horse racing, Gaelic games, soccer and rugby to rowing, motorsport, greyhound racing and others. The Galway Races are known worldwide and are the highlight of the Irish horse racing calendar. Over the years it has grown into an annual festival lasting seven days.
Pádraig Coyne is a retired Irish Gaelic footballer, who played as a goalkeeper with the Galway senior team and his local club Milltown.
Cillian Gallagher is a professional rugby union player from Ireland. He primarily plays as a lock, but can also play in the back row. Gallagher currently plays for Irish provincial side Connacht in the Pro14, having come through the team's academy.
Cathal Forde is an Irish rugby union player, currently playing for United Rugby Championship side Connacht. He plays as a centre or fly-half.
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