After a number of years of discussions, the AIL was formed in 1990/91 as an all-Ireland club competition for senior rugby Clubs, replacing the province-based structures, which had applied since the ark.
The All Ireland leagues have gone through a number of structural iterations since the foundation, with the current league structure of 10 team leagues, playing home and away for 18 games, in the regulation season, followed by a top four semi-final play-off, leading to a Div 1A final in the Aviva Stadium in place since 2014/15.
It is widely accepted that this All Ireland league/playoff structure has inspired club rugby in Ireland and presents a ferocious challenge to the clubs involved. It may not be logical to bolt a cup competition onto a league, but it certainly leads to excitement!
A review of Clontarf’s Championship winning season last year gives a snapshot to how competitive this league is.
In the 24/25 season, Clontarf secured victory in 4 games by scoring with the last play, as the clock moved deep into the red. To be specific, last year Clontarf were losing against St Mary’s, Cork Con ( twice!) and Terenure, with time up and game over at the next breakdown, and still managed to win.
Against St Mary’s the game was in the 88th minute when Clontarf forced their way over under the posts to win. Against Con, in Cork, time was up when Clontarf scored in the corner to steal it, and in the return fixture in Castle Avenue, sheer pressure at an away scrum under the Con posts resulted in a mishandle and the winning score to Clontarf. In Lakeland’s, time was up when the Tarf pack drove in a maul and the conversion sailed between the posts for the away win.
A glance at the final positions in the league table for that season shows how important those last ditch efforts were. Those victories gave us 12 points and denied Con 6 points, St Mary’s 3 points and Terenure 3 points. It resulted in Tarf finishing in 1st place, with a home semi against Lansdowne rather than 4th and an away semi against Cork Con!
Last year’s semi-final against Lansdowne was another gripping affair, with two teams so committed that there was no score to either side in the second half of the game. Clontarf hung on to make the final where it took a huge effort and a last minute turnover to confirm victory!
This year’s campaign, while not over, has reached the semi-final stage, with Lansdowne again making the journey to Castle Avenue. Arguably the season has been more competitive with the final 4 places not confirmed until the final round of games.
Again, there have been crucial moments that secured victory. Down to 13 men in Ballymacarn Park and time running out; Clontarf determination and a huge surge from the pack, snatched the away win against the odds. In Castle Avenue, with a comfortable lead over Old Belvedere, Clontarf opted for a scrum rather than a certain three points at a penalty under the away posts. The resulting penalty try added 7 to the home score which was the difference in a 54 51 victory.
This is not luck. This is the result of planning, experience and determination, operating in an environment that pays relentless attention to detail. Creating that environment requires a huge commitment from the Club. It requires the permission of the members, the focus of the committees, and the support of our sponsors to maintain the Cub’s pursuit of excellence and our continued relevance in Irish Club Rugby.
Since the League took on its current structure in 2014/15, there have been, including this year, 10 seasons played ( two were cancelled due to COVID ). So in the last 10 seasons played Clontarf have reached the semi-final 9 times and, the final 7 times (to date), and have been crowned champions 3 times.
This has been a remarkable journey and an enormous achievement from a Club that is resolutely bedded in a community rather than connected to a school . Huge credit is due to the members of the Club who make it all worthwhile, the Executive of the Club, who face all issues like men on a raft trying to ford rapids and, of course, to our magnificent sponsors who generously find reasons for Corporate life to play a huge supportive role in parish sport.
Peter Walsh
Chronicler of scrums, storms, and all the beautiful chaos at Castle Avenue
A note from the Editor
As ever, huge thanks to Peter Walsh, for all his fantastic contributions over the years and to Pat Mullen, for compiling the stats.
Also a big thank you to this season’s Jersey Sponsors.
