Portora rugby captain Josh Kennedy is in determined mood as the team get ready for their Danske Bank Schools Cup clash with Regent House. Portora will travel to Newtownards on Saturday for their biggest game of their season hopeful they can rise to the occasion and produce a performance that will see them embark on a successful cup run.
“This is as big a game as we have played this year and it definitely feels very different to a normal match,” admitted Josh. 
“It’s the Schools' Cup and that one match can decide your season. Plus this is probably the last year as Portora and that brings added pressure on us to go out and make our mark for Portora. I think its more pride than pressure and it will lift the boys because we know we are playing for a jersey that means a lot. 
"We have one chance and we have to give everything because we know there is no coming back to do it again. The past couple of years we have done poorly in the Schools' Cup and we need to bring a bit of pride back to the school.”
Josh, who has just turned 18, was one of several players missing for Portora when they lost to Regent at the start of the season, but he is happy to have another chance and is confident the cup game will produce a different outcome. 
“It wasn’t the greatest draw in the world but at the same time it could have been worse,” he said. 
“We played them at the start of the year when we were missing a few guys. It was only the second game of the season and we were only getting going. I don’t think that defeat will affect the boys at all, because we know how much we have come on this season. We see that as just a blip at the start of the season, and it is something we intend to go out on Saturday and correct. 
"We are quietly confident that we can put in a good performance and get the result that we deserve but we know at the same time if we go there and don’t turn up for the first 20 minutes and don’t get off the mark then they will punish us because they are a good team. 
"Unless we play the full 70 minutes they will end up beating us.”
It is not only the players who are anxiously looking forward to the game. Josh acknowledges it has been a frequent topic of conversation in the school classrooms in recent weeks. 
“It is definitely all the talk around the school at the minute,” he said. 
“Even teachers are coming up to you and speaking about it and asking your thoughts on it. The whole school seems to be talking about it, which is good.”
There will be a lot more time spent discussing the competition if Portora can return home on Saturday afternoon having secured their place in the draw for the next round.