The largest ever Connacht Youth Cups draw took place last evening when 128 teams from 23 clubs learned their opponents for the 2018/19 competitions.
In total there are 9 Boys and Girls Cups ranging in age from U13 to U18.5. The U13 Cup will feature 19 teams, with 18 teams in the U14 and U15 competitions, while the U16, U17 and U18.5 Boys Cups will be contested by 17, 12 and 15 teams respectively.
New for this year in the Girls Cup competitions is the inclusion of an U14 Cup. This will be contested by 11 clubs, such is the growing number of girl’s minis and youths players in the province. The U16 and U18 Cups will feature a combined 18 teams, meaning a record 29 Girls teams will take part in this season’s Youth Cups.
The Girls Cup finals are scheduled for 3rd March 2019 at The Sportsground with the Boys Cup finals pencilled in for the same venue on the weekend of 7th and 14th April 2019 (exact date and kick-off time TBC).
The draw was held at the Sportsground’s Heineken Rugby Clubhouse and took place in conjunction with the launch of the Connacht Rugby Player Ambassador Programme. This programme involves each Connacht club being designated two pro players who will act as Club Ambassadors for the remainder of the season and will be made available to the club for visits and coaching/skills sessions.
The full draw details are as follows:
