Local lads are the catalyst for Bann success says Soper

Head Coach Daniel Soper was delighted with his side’s devastating display on Saturday, which was all teed up by a solid defensive performance.

And that, Soper says, is largely due to the commitment of Bann’s homegrown stars.

“We’ve spent a lot of time on the defence and on our systems,” he said, “but the lads never give up and make teams work as hard as they can to get over the line.

“There’s a great camaraderie in the squad. When you’re at a club like Banbridge, who have a lot of players from the local area, that happens.

“A lot of the guys are great mates and have grown up together so they work hard for each other.”

Bann are top of the table bythanks to their regular bonus points and they also boast the best points difference in the league.

Those two factors, Soper says, could prove to be key come the end of the campaign.

He said: “A lot of teams have won a similar amount of games but from our five wins, three of them have brought bonus points and even in our defeats, we managed to pick up points.

“Those are sepearating us from the rest but at the end of the day, if we don’t win next week, we could be down to fourth.

“Our points difference is pretty good too. The league is so tight that it could be significant come the end of the season.

“That’s what makes wins like Saturday’s over a team like Cashel important. To only concede five points and win by 23 is great.”