A bigger, faster and more experienced Iona College first XV squad will start the 2021 AIC competition with plenty of confidence next weekend.

Seven players return from last year’s side and will play alongside some exciting young talent who will likely push for a first XV jersey at some stage this season, according to Head of Sport Keith Harron.

Overview with Keith Harron: 

“The AIC competition this year is going to be really even I think,” Harron told Rugby News.

“Traditionally Marist College Ashgrove are really strong in all age groups, but this year you wouldn’t think that there is a team that really stands out at the moment given the preseason results so far.

“The 2020 season was quite interrupted by Covid and although we played some games, it all came to a pretty abrupt end before we got to the playoffs. It’s hard to get a gauge of last year’s results to help predict what is going to happen this season.

“Our first XV side probably didn’t perform as well as we would have liked last year but we had a lot of success with some of our younger teams.

“We were shaping up to play Marist College Ashgrove in numerous playoff games across the age groups but unfortunately they all got cancelled.

“We’ve played a few trial games so far and most schools also competed in the Ballymore Cup last weekend.

“We played a trial against Villanova and narrowly won that game and then at the Ballymore Cup we were beaten by Padua and St Laurence’s so I think that reflects how close the competition will be this year.”

What type of rugby can we expect to see from Iona this season?

“We’ll play a pretty expansive game. We’ve got a lot of talented players in our backline and certainly I think our strength is in our outside backs.

“But you’ve got to set a good platform to do that and fortunately, we’ve actually got quite a big team this year as far as the forwards go.

“If we can set a good platform, then I think there’s enough talent in our backline to do some damage.”

2021 squad: 

“We’ve got seven players returning from last year’s first XV side and that’s been really helpful. The experience of those players will be crucial this season.

“We’ve also got a really strong year 10 cohort and a number of those players who turn 16 this year are on the fringes of playing first XV this season.”

Player(s) to watch: 

“Beau Brown is a talented lock who is in the Reds academy. Front rower Saxon Warwick is a returning player who is very strong and our captain and breakaway Joey Thornton has a great work rate and leads the team really well.

“In the backs, we’ve got a young fullback Jeremy Trappett. He’s got a lot of potential and is still only in year 11.”

Bold prediction for the season ahead: 

“It’s really hard to gauge how teams are going to this year. I think you’ve got to win your first round to set up your season and there are some big games in week one.

“We play Villanova first up, Padua play St Peter’s, Eddies play St Patrick’s and Marist play St Laurence’s.

“If you’re winning in round one, considering the closeness of the competition, then you’re in with a chance this season.

“We’ve got our annual local derby against Villanova and that’s going to be a close one. Our colleges are situated nearby one another and we have a good respect and rivalry with each other.

“It’s a fantastic way to start the year.

“Across the age groups, we’ve also got a strong year 7 team, they just won the Ballymore Cup and we’ve got a talented year 10 team as well. They’ve got a lot of potential.”