Clogher Valley got back to winning ways on Saturday as they set up a second round Towns’ Cup clash against Armagh 2nd XV following a convincing win over Randalstown in round one on Saturday. 
Last year’s beaten finalists never looked back following a dominant first half after which they led by 15-0 and while Randalstown did score a try in the second half, the Valley reasserted with a penalty try of their own to see the game out. Indeed, had it not been for some handling errors in the final third, the Valley would have enjoyed a much more comfortable margin of victory. 
Nevertheless, cup games are all about winning, a fact not lost on Valley joint coach Davy Black. 
“In the cup, all you can do is win your games and get into the next round, and we did that,” said a pleased Black. 
“Randalstown have been doing fairly well in their league so it was a cup tie that could have been tricky. Thankfully, though, we managed to come through it. 
“It was a typical cup tie; it was dogged and there was not much in the way of free flowing rugby but we got the win and that’s what we set out for,” he added.
Clogher will now face Armagh 2nd XV in the next round and Black expects another tough test.
“They will have an eye on winning the cup so we’re under no illusions that it is going to be another difficult game, especially as it is away from home. In saying that, we will go there with a desire to win and progress in the competition,” commented Black.
On a sticky pitch with some surface water in evidence, the Valley side featured some players returning from injury, including their captain, David Sharkey.
A bright start from Valley saw a good return of the kick off by McKenna translated into positive running involving Cobain, Sharkey, Treanor and Keys. 
The pressure produced a penalty to Valley which scrum-half Trotter converted to give the visitors a 3-0 lead after six minutes.
More positive play from Valley, with Trotter establishing good field position in the Randalstown half with a good box kick saw the home side on the defensive. 
A penalty award was kicked to the corner and following a punishing maul drive by the Valley pack it was Cobain who broke away to score Valley’s first try. 
Trotter added the conversion to see Valley leading 10-0 after 15 minutes.
The rest of the half saw more of the same from Valley with Randalstown barely encroaching into the visitors’ territory. Rather than hammer home the advantage however, a lack of accuracy meant that a number of scoring chances were spurned by Valley. 
It was only in the closing minutes of the half that Valley were to score again after a Randalstown player was yellow carded. 
A scrum in the Randalstown 22 saw Ryan Wilson pick up and manoeuvre himself over the tryline for Valley’s second try. 
The conversion was missed and Valley were leading 15-0 as the whistle blew for half-time, arguably having deserved a bigger lead given their dominance of the half.
The second half saw Valley adding some width to their attacks and putting the ball through the hands.
 Keys returned a Randalstown kick with a barnstorming run while Agnew made good ground with a run up the middle and McKenna athletically bounded through attempted tackles to set up Sharkey for a mazy run. 
Agnew again found gaps through the middle to give Valley some momentum but on each and every occasion, however, the Valley possession came to nothing. 
The combination of handling errors, poor co-ordination at the breakdown (and a lack of care in the protection of the ball) and obdurate defence by Randalstown prevented further scores for Valley.
From virtually their only meaningful attack, Randalstown scored a try under the posts following a well-rehearsed move from a lineout. 
The conversion was added to leave it at 15-7 on 55 minutes and the watching Valley supporters were starting to feel nervous.
Good pressure from Cobain and forceful work by Treanor at the breakdown led to a penalty award to Valley on 62 minutes, which Trotter was to push wide.
While the rest of the second half was more of the same, with handling errors the order of the day for Valley in attack and some passivity at the breakdown, Randalstown nevertheless did not look like scoring.
 As the clock ticked down to full time a good kick through and chase by Donaldson saw him impeded by a Randalstown defender with the tryline in sight. 
The referee had no hesitation in awarding a penalty try to Valley. 
Trotter added the conversion to leave Valley the 22-7 victors at full-time.
Ultimately this was a clear and deserved victory for the Valley. They will know that they can improve dramatically on this rusty performance and will work with the coaching team during the week in advance of their Qualifying One fixture at home to Cooke next Saturday.
Clogher currently sit third in the table beyond Bangor and Instonians and they will need a win on Saturday if they are to keep up the pressure on the top two, although Black anticipates a tight encounter.
“Cooke seem to have found a bit of form and have got a couple of good results recently so it will be a tough game for us. It will also be another test for our squad as we are still missing three of four boys through injury,” stated the Clogher Valley joint coach.