Holders RBAI weather late fightback from rivals Campbell to seal place in Schools' Cup quarter-finals

Jamie Kirk’s side are chasing a third consecutive title but face another daunting away trip in the last eight as they travel to Wallace.

Kirk is hoping his side will have learned a valuable lesson from their encounter in the previous round.

“We always knew it was going to be a really tight one,” he said.

"Going into the game there were a lot of nerves, going into the competition there is a lot of talk about boys that have experienced the cup before – maybe their second or third year in the cup – but you have that big six-week build-in from the draw, then you have a big Belfast derby and your’re away.

“You can talk about pressure all you want but until you actually experience it, it is hard to know what it feels loke and how you are going to react.

"I think both sides were nervous going into the game and that probably affected the level of the rugby.”

“We were pleased to come through it, and we have plenty to work on and there is certainly no complacency now as we go through.”

Kirk. said the extent of the rivalry in a big game was perhaps the only ‘downside’ to the tie with so much riding on the outcome.

“You have boys that have experienced the cup in the past but each year it means so much to them,” he said.

"To go straight into a round 16 game with two teams at the level they are then add the rivalry into that as well, it is probably the one downside of a draw like that, that there is a lot hinging on one game.

“I think now that the boys have experienced it we’re stronger for it.

“We play the big schools in Leinster and that is s a real strength for us that our fixture list does put us under a huge amount of pressure thoughout the year, but at the end of the day when it comes down to results nothing matters until the cup.

“When you get to that stage of the season and start off with a game like that it is pretty important.”

“Now that you have that two-week turnaround and not that big build-up into the first game the feeling in the camp now is less nervous and more excited because it now feels like we are here.”

Kirk is under no illusions over the challenge facing his team in Lisburn.

“It is crazy. We have drawn Wallace at 1st XV Schools’ Cup, 2nd XV Schools’ Cup and Medallion Shield. We couldn’t work out the odds, but it would be something like 400/1 for those three teams to draw Wallace away,” added Kirk.

“This is what cup rugby is about. You don’t know where or who you are going to play, whatever the challenge is it doesn’t really change the dynamic in the group. We have to be focused on ourselves.

“It is cup rugby and it will come down to small margins and who is more accurate on the date.”