Rainey Endowed started well by kicking off and taking the game deep into Regent House territory.
They pressurised the Regent defence into giving away a number of penalties and, from a quickly taken penalty six metres from the home line, Rainey captain, Michael Dawson, took the ball forward.
Oisin Quinn then got possession and forced his way over the line for an unconverted try and a 5-0 lead after three minutes.
This seemed to unsettle the home side and further Rainey pressure resulted in a penalty just outside the opposition ‘22’. Rainey outhalf, Aaran Murphy, stepped up and converted to give the boys from Magherafelt an 8-0 lead.
Regent now began to play with more purpose and, following some strong midfield tackling by the Regent centres, Aaron Culbert and Aaron Reid, the ball was turned over.
The home side attacked the blind side of a ruck and good handling led to outhalf, Peter Eakin, sprinting into the corner for an unconverted try.
Rainey now threw everything into attack but Regent defended heroically inside their 22m area for the remainder of the half and the teams turned at 8-5 in favour of the Magherafelt travellers.
The second half saw Regent attack frequently with ferocious tackles coming in from both sides.
On 47 minutes a Rainey clearance kick was fielded on the left by the Regent House defence.
The ball was spread across their back line and the attack ended with right winger, Rhys Thompson, sprinting in for an excellent counter attack try.
Again the try went unconverted but Regent had now swung the tie in their favour at 10-8.
For the remainder of the game Regent had territorial advantage forcing the visitors back into their 22m area with astute kicks from Regent No 10, Peter Eakin, and probing breaks by captain and scrum half, Gary Wright, causing considerable concern for the Rainey Endowed School team.
Man of the match, Regent House openside loose, Jonny Baird, was to the fore at the break down and put in a number of outstanding tackles.
Regent’s front row trio of Matty Kane, Blair Savage and Jared Purvis had the upper hand in the scrum.
This enabled their forwards to have a secure platform in the second half thereby denying Rainey Endowed any worthwhile possession and the 10-8 win, while narrow, was deserved for the efforts of the home side throughout the game, particularly in defence.
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