Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Belfast Live
Belfast Live
Sport
Gareth Fullerton

Campbell College vs Methody: MCB captain Peter O'Hagan hoping to realise long-held dream

Methodist College Belfast captain Peter O’Hagan is determined to cap off his schools' rugby career by achieving the "ultimate goal".

Methody's Class of 2022 take on Campbell College in Thursday's Ulster Schools' Cup final at Kingspan Stadium.

O'Hagan was in the side that lost in the 2020 semi-finals to Wallace High School, but this year the teenager and his teammates are out to make amends.

Read more: Ireland vs Scotland: Rob Herring insists there is no panic over scrum issues

“I’m excited, very excited. Everybody’s really looking forward to it, just to finally get to it," O'Hagan said.

"I think the semi-final win was good, a good place to start and a good building block for moving on to the final, if we can build on what we did there and continue the good things, and cut out the bad things.

"We came up to watch Campbell’s semi-final, obviously in poor conditions, but I think the final will be a tight game.

"It’s been good to be able to come up from the start, and 7/8 years later finishing Schools’ rugby with the ultimate goal, hopefully.

"Everyone needs to be switched on, and everyone knows what we need to do. It’s about being able to step up on the day.”

MCB Head of Rugby Nick Wells admits he is feeling "pressure for the boys" and is expecting a stern test against old rivals Campbell in Thursday's final.

“I’m really looking forward to it," Wells said.

"You never take it for granted, getting back to Kingspan with all the school coming out to support, it’s what we work for all year and it’s great to get there and finish the journey on a high. In terms of our semi-final, I’m probably not overly happy with the first 15 minutes, wee bit of miscommunication up front with how we were dealing with things in our own 22.

"But the good thing about having Campbell in the final, we know if we’re not 100% accurate and ready to go then we’ll not get the result we want.

"I feel excited for the boys and I feel pressure for the boys. You work with them, you see them day in and day out, and you want the very best for them.

"From my point of view, it’s nice to be in the final, but ultimately I want the very best for them.”

Read more: Johnny Sexton announces retirement plans after signing new IRFU deal

Read more: Introducing Frank Bradshaw Ryan, Ulster's 'giant' new signing

Sign up to our free sports newsletter to get the latest headlines to your inbox.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.