Dromore 1st XV 10
Clogher 1st XV 14


Clogher Valley had to dig deep to claim a hard fought win over Dromore on Saturday.
Trailing 10-0, Clogher’s hopes of a top four finish in the league looked to be about to take a blow but they managed to turn things around with a strong second half showing to secure the victory.
Starting up the slope on a heavy pitch the Valley kick off was reclaimed by man of the match Eugene McKenna leading to early Valley pressure. Finally after six minutes Dromore had their first touch of the ball and a scrum on halfway. Whilst the scum was under pressure a slick movement of the ball through the hands saw the left winger score in the corner without a Valley player having time to stop the movement. The kick was good and Dromore led 7-0.
Dromore continued to run the ball at every opportunity and poor Valley tackling contributed to their momentum. The Valley forwards were playing well but a stout Dromore defence was coping. After 19 minutes Dromore were awarded a long range penalty and this was converted to leave them leading 10-0.
Valley coaches made their first change bringing on Orr in the back row. This made little change and Valley were not only struggling to stay in the game but also failing to make any headway with the ball in hand. Just before half time Valley coaches introduced prop McAleer for Primrose and he immediately began to make an impact with his strong running. Valley managed to hold out to half time.
A different Valley started the second half. They begin to dominate possession and with the driving maul now functioning within five minutes of the restart had reduced the deficit when Falconer was driven over. Trotter added the points and Valley were back in contention.
Valley coaches made another change when Orr moved to second centre and Best to scrum half with Speers moving to out half. This produced Valley’s best rugby of the day. With the backs moving the ball and Speers kicking into some good positions the pressure was increasing on Dromore. This was relieved when Valley committed another penalty offence and Dromore cleared the resultant penalty to touch on their own ten metre line.
However this week the Valley line out was back to normal and they poached the ball and drove at the Dromore defence. With backs and forwards now involved in the driving maul Falconer was again driven over for another try. Best converted and Valley led 14-10 after 55 minutes.
After 60 minutes Dromore had a narrow miss with a penalty kick but Valley then exerted a stranglehold on the game which Dromore never looked like breaking. Valley ran out 14-10 victors.
The Valley coaches will again be disappointed by the teams overall performance. The basics of scrum and lineout are excellent but the poor tackling and lack of penetration with ball in hand are a major concern. Valley now approach a period where they have to play midweek to catch up on the fixture backlog with visits to Ards on Wednesday night followed by CIYMS next Saturday.
The 2nd XV lost to Omagh 12-18 in a close contest for their first defeat in 2016. 
The 3rd XV continued their unbeaten season with a comprehensive win 50-10 over Donegal at the Cran, though the score was tied 10-10 at half time.