The Belfast Telegraph Senior Cup Semi-Final will be played at Stormont’s Playball facility on Wednesday 22nd February.
Fees at the gate will be:
Juniors – £2
Concessions & Students – £4
Adults – £5
We have 2 exciting games lined up for the semi’s after the draw on Thursday 9th February at the Belfast Telegraph building at Claredon docks confirmed the following line-ups:
Semi – Final 1
Banbridge Academy (left) vs Royal School Armagh (right)
Semi – Final 2
Belfast Royal Academy (right) vs Strathearn School (left)
The draw was completed with each school attending along with their Captains and Vice-Captains, each interviewed by the Belfast Telegraph at the draw, the link for the article can be found here. The girls had this to say about the draw and the upcoming games (taken from the article by Belfast Telegraph).
Armagh captain Anna McKew is desperate to see her school go one better this year. The Ulster Hockey Schools’ Super League champions are arguably favourites to lift the trophy next month. She said: “We lost in last year’s final, which was heartbreaking. For the girls, like myself, who played in that game, we now have another chance to win the trophy. We would love to get our name on the cup after last year’s disappointment, but we have a difficult semi-final to play first.”
Banbridge captain Ruby Wilson believes her team has what it takes to stop their local rivals. She said: “Royal School Armagh won the Super League this year so they are probably favourites for the Schools’ Cup but last time we played them, it finished in a 1-1 draw, so we’ve shown that we can match them. If we bring our A-game then there is no reason why we can’t win the semi-final.”
Strathearn’s Jess Ryan said: “It didn’t matter who came out of the hat, it was going to be a difficult game. I think both matches will be good. It should make for a great day. Our team is mostly made up of girls in Upper Sixth. Last year, most of the girls were part of the team that lost in the semi-finals to Armagh. I feel like we’ve been on the brink of success for a while and know we’re ready to take things a step further.”
BRA skipper Olivia Beattie is, meanwhile, bidding to win the prestigious competition for a second time. She was part of the team that won a thrilling final — a 4-2 victory over Lisburn school Friends — just before lockdown in 2020 and, reflecting on that success, said: “I won the Schools’ Cup in Fourth Year. It was an incredible experience to win such a big competition at such a young age. Myself and a couple of the other girls who were part of that team have told them how special it is. Now I just want the girls that haven’t had the experience of playing in a final or winning the trophy to get that same feeling.”
Head of Sport Paul Ferguson said: “The Belfast Telegraph is proud to once again sponsor and support this prestigious competition as the finest schoolgirl hockey players in Northern Ireland battle it out for glory. We look forward to bringing comprehensive coverage of the semi-final matches later this month followed by the decider on March 8. It’s important the girls are given a platform to showcase their special talents on their sporting journey.”
