Ulster Schools' Cup

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Ulster Schools' Cup
140px
Logo of the Ulster Branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union
Sport Rugby Union
Founded 1876
No. of teams 30 (season 2013-14)
Most recent champion(s) Royal Belfast Academical Institution
Most titles Methodist College Belfast
35 outright and 2 shared
Related competitions Medallion Shield
Official website Ulster Rugby
Danske Bank Schools Cup
Notes
Also includes subsidiary competitions - Schools' Shield, Schools' Bowl and Schools' Trophy

The Ulster Schools' Challenge Cup is an annual competition involving schools affiliated to the Ulster Branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union. The Schools' Cup has the distinction of being the world's second-oldest rugby competition, having been competed for every year since 1876.[1] The trophy itself is a three-handled silver cup with a plinth mounted on a large shield.

Methodist College Belfast have won the most titles, with 37 (35 outright wins and 2 shared wins).

The current holder is Royal Belfast Academical Institution.

Format

The Schools' Cup was reformatted in 2003/04. Previously teams defeated in the first round would enter the Subsidiary Shield competition, teams losing in later rounds would find their season over. All entrants, except those who drew byes, entered in the first round of the competition. It was felt that this could lead to significant mismatches. The reformatting sought to avoid this and to extend the amount of meaningful rugby played by school teams.

The first round was changed to act as a qualifying stage for weaker teams and first round losers entered a new Schools' Trophy competition.

The bulk of the teams entered the competition in the second round where they were joined by the first-round qualifiers. Teams losing at this stage are entered into another new competition, the Schools' Bowl.

In the third round, four seeded teams entered the fray. Third-round losers entered the Subsidiary Shield, renamed the Schools' Shield. The Subsidiary Shield was first introduced in 1971. It did not have its own trophy until 1980 when the Headmaster of Grosvenor High School and then Ulster Branch President Ken Reid presented the Grosvenor Shield.

The remaining teams contest for the Schools' Cup proper, the semi-finals and final of which are played at Ravenhill, the Ulster Branch HQ and home of the Ulster side.

The competition format was changed again in 2005/06. The first round was a round-robin competition involving three teams. The winner from this joined eleven other teams in the second round. The six winners from the second round joined ten more teams in the third round; the second round losers competed for the Schools' Trophy.

The eight third-round winners proceeded to the fourth round where they were joined by eight seeded teams. The third-round losers competed for the Schools' Bowl. The fourth round proceeded as per the old third round.

The increased number of competitions means that schools which are very unlikely to win the main competition have more competitive rugby and an opportunity to win a trophy.

History

The first winners in 1876 were the Royal School, Armagh. When the Cup no longer had room to record the winners on it, the Cup was mounted on a wooden shield to which plaques were attached. In the centenary year of the competition after the 1976 final, the governors of Methodist College presented a new shield, as the original had no more room to record the winners. The Royal School won in 1977, thus claiming the place at the top of the new shield. The first wooden shield is on exhibit at the Ulster Branch offices at Ravenhill.

The first final to be played at Ravenhill was in 1924. Before that, finals were played at the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society grounds at Balmoral, the Ulster Sports Club grounds at Cross Parade in Belfast, and one final was even played at the Linfield Football Club ground at Windsor Park.[2]

A total of seventeen schools have won the trophy at least once.

Although not widely known outside of Northern Ireland, the Schools' Cup is important within Ulster rugby. With no school 1st XV league, the Schools' Cup is the only competitive rugby played by the senior school teams.

The St. Patrick's Day final is televised live on BBC Northern Ireland, complete with half-time punditry and post-match interviews.

Performance by school

Information as provided by Schools' Cup Final programme (various years)

School Location Outright Titles Shared Titles Runners-Up Total Finals Last Title Last Final
Methodist College Belfast Belfast 35 2 25 62 2014 2014
Royal Belfast Academical Institution Belfast 30 4 21 55 2015 2015
Campbell College Belfast 23 4 12 39 2011 2011
Coleraine Academical Institution Coleraine 9 0 24 33 1992 1998
The Royal School, Armagh Armagh 9 0 3 12 2004 2004
Portora Royal School Enniskillen 6 1 5 12 1942 1942
Bangor Grammar School Bangor 5 0 4 9 1988 1995
Ballymena Academy Ballymena 3 0 6 9 2010 2010
Rainey Endowed School Magherafelt 2 1 2 5 1982 1982
Foyle College Londonderry 2 0 4 6 1915 1915
Belfast Royal Academy Belfast 1 3 5 9 1997 2010
Regent House Grammar School Newtownards 1 1 2 4 1996 2008
Royal School Dungannon Dungannon 1 0 4 5 1907 1975
Annadale Grammar School (now Wellington College) Belfast 1 0 1 2 1958 1978
Ballyclare High School Ballyclare 1 0 1 2 1973 2012
Belfast Boys' Model School Belfast 1 0 0 1 1971 1971
Grosvenor High School Belfast 1 0 0 1 1983 1983
Wallace High School Lisburn 0 0 5 5 N/A 2015
Derry Academy Derry 0 0 2 2 N/A 1896
Dalriada School Ballymoney 0 0 1 1 N/A 1993
Galway Grammar School Galway 0 0 1 1 N/A 1887
Lurgan College Lurgan 0 0 1 1 N/A 1934
Omagh Academy Omagh 0 0 1 1 N/A 1985
Sullivan Upper School Holywood 0 0 1 1 N/A 2014

Finals

Note: Prior to 1942 drawn finals were always replayed. Then in 1942 it was decided if the final is drawn, a replay would only take place if both schools agreed. It has since become the rule that replays are never held and the trophy is automatically shared. Shares occurred in 1942, 1953, 1954, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1964 & 1996.

1870s

  • 1879 The Royal School, Armagh 6-0 Methodist College

1880s

  • 1883 The Royal School, Armagh 8-0 Royal Belfast Academical Institution
  • 1885 The Royal School, Armagh 5-0 Methodist College
  • 1886 Coleraine Academical Institution 5-0 Royal Belfast Academical Institution (After Extra Time)
  • 1888 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 3-0 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1889 Methodist College 3-0 Coleraine Academical Institution

1890s

  • 1892 Methodist College 8-0 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1893 Methodist College 3-0 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1894 Coleraine Academical Institution 3-0 Methodist College
  • 1895 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 6-5 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1897 Coleraine Academical Institution 6-0 Methodist College

1900s

  • 1904 Methodist College 11-0 Portora Royal School
  • 1905 Portora Royal School 16-5 Methodist College
  • 1906 Portora Royal School 8-5 Foyle College
  • 1908 Portora Royal School 52-0 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1909 Portora Royal School 42-0 Coleraine Academical Institution

1910s

  • 1911 competition unfinished
  • 1914 Methodist College 13-0 Foyle College
  • 1916 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 3-0 Campbell College
  • 1917 Campbell College 9-3 Royal Belfast Academical Institution
  • 1919 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 8-0 Campbell College

1920s

  • 1921 Campbell College 8-0 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1926 Campbell College 11-3 Coleraine Academical Institution (Replay - after a 14-14 draw)
  • 1928 Methodist College 24-3 Ballymena Academy
  • 1929 Methodist College 18-5 Portora Royal School

1930s

  • 1932 Campbell College 11-0 Royal Belfast Academical Institution
  • 1933 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 8-0 Methodist College
  • 1935 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 14-0 Methodist College (Replay after 6-6 draw)
  • 1938 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 7-6 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1939 Coleraine Academical Institution 16-5 Methodist College

1940s

  • 1941 Portora Royal School 11-3 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1943 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 8-0 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1944 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 10-0 Coleraine Academical Institution
  • 1946 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 8-3 Methodist College
  • 1947 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 7-3 Methodist College
  • 1948 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 11-3 Campbell College (Replay after 0-0 draw)
  • 1949 Methodist College 12-3 Royal Belfast Academical Institution

1950s

  • 1951 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 6-0 Campbell College
  • 1953 Methodist College 0-0 Campbell College shared
  • 1954 Campbell College 10-10 Royal Belfast Academical Institution shared
  • 1955 Campbell College 6-5 Methodist College
  • 1956 Campbell College 6-3 Methodist College
  • 1957 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 5-3 Methodist College

1960s

  • 1961 Campbell College 16-6 Royal Belfast Academical Institution
  • 1964 Belfast Royal Academy 0-0 Campbell College shared
  • 1965 Campbell College 14-0 Rainey Endowed School
  • 1968 Campbell College 13-0 Belfast Royal Academy

1970s

  • 1979 Methodist College 10-7 Bangor Grammar School

1980s

  • 1986 Bangor Grammar School 17-4 Royal Belfast Academical Institution
  • 1987 Methodist College 10-9 Bangor Grammar School

1990s

  • 1992 Coleraine Academical Institution 35-21 Methodist College
  • 1996 Methodist College 9-9 Regent House, Newtownards shared
  • 1998 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 57-3 Coleraine Academical Institution

2000s

  • 2005 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 12-10 Methodist College[8]
  • 2006 Methodist College 11-5 Campbell College[9]
  • 2007 Royal Belfast Academical Institution 15-0 Wallace High School[10]
  • 2009 Methodist College 16-0 Royal Belfast Academical Institution[12]

2010s

Subsidiary competitions

The Grosvenor Shield

Subsidiary Shield 1971-2003, Schools' Shield 2004-

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

Schools' Bowl

2000s

2010s

Schools' Trophy

2000s

2010s

See also

Sources

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External links

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