Another sizeable crowd is expected at Lakelands Park on Saturday when Terenure and Clontarf renew a rivalry dubbed “the new classico” after back-to-back clashes in the Energia All-Ireland League finals of three and two seasons ago.
The two Dublin clubs meet for a 10th time in the AIL over the last four seasons, and, with both sides on course to reach the semi-finals for the fourth season running, as ever the stakes will be high.
With just four rounds remaining Clontarf lead the table on 52 points, ahead of Cork Con (48), St Mary’s (48) and Terenure (47), who are six points clear of the chasing Lansdowne and Ballynahinch in the scramble for the playoffs and coveted home semi-finals.
“It’s a massive game, we can’t wait for it, given how the league is so tight. It’s one to look forward to,” says Terenure prop Adam Tuite, for whom this will be an additionally significant day.
Following on from their home match against Lansdowne two seasons ago and Clontarf last season, next Saturday’s match will also be Terenure’s third annual charity match in aid of Childline by ISPCC and the Children’s Health Foundation. It’s a concept close to Tuite’s heart as his sister Claire spent three years in Children’s Health Ireland at Crumlin before her death in December 2017.
In recognition of the support given to the Tuite family by the children’s hospital, the Terenure prop took part in an annual fundraising charity called “the Freezebury Challenge” in 2020, 2021 and 2022. Swimmers endured the cold waters of rivers, lakes and seas in and around Ireland every day in February, for at least one minute on the first of the month, through to swimming for at least 28 minutes on the 28th.
Tuite helped raise €60,000 over three years, on foot of which the long-serving Terenure scrumhalf Alan Bennie – whose parents come to most home games in Lakelands Park from Scotland – and some of his team-mates organised a charity match in aid of the same causes when the club hosted Lansdowne two seasons ago.
This involved auctioning a set of one-off replica white jerseys, with space for local businesses to pay for advertisements. Terenure wore the jerseys against Lansdowne (with the named charities on each sleeve, raising €10,000) and Clontarf last season, when this helped to raise another €15,000. Replica purple jerseys will be auctioned again on Saturday, along with collection buckets and an online collection for those who cannot make it to Lakelands Park.
“I can’t take too much credit,” Tuite insists. “Alan Bennie started it when putting a group of people together and is the main driver, while a lot of people in the club contribute an incredible amount of work to it as well. But we’re hoping to surpass last year’s total, all going well.
“It’s so cool that the club supports this charity game and it means the world to me, my family and all my friends. That’s really special,” says Tuite, whose parents, Paul and Elaine, sister Laura and extended family will be among the crowd in Lakelands Park.
Tuite, a local boy, started playing mini rugby with the club from the age of “four or five”, but he remained fairly casual about the game until his final two years in school at Terenure College. He then began playing at under-20 level with the club in 2017.
“The club were there for me in tough times and I can’t stress how lucky I have been to play for the club in this era,” he says in recognition of what has been the most successful, and buoyant, period in the club’s AIL history. Terenure had never reached the final before 2022 but have now done so three times in a row, including the breakthrough triumph of 2023.
Terenure did beat Clontarf in round four by 28-10 in Castle Avenue, but on foot of Chris Cosgrave following Harrison Brewer to a Japanese club rugby as a medical joker, and Conor Phillips rejoining the Ireland Sevens squad, their seven-match unbeaten run came to an end two weeks ago away to City of Armagh.
So, Terenure’s need is more acute this Saturday.
“It’s been frustrating but we know where we’ve been going wrong and we know we can fix things, and looking at the table we know we need to do that,” says Tuite.
By contrast, Clontarf returned to the top of the table last Saturday by winning 41-7 away to City of Armagh in their rearranged game.
“These are the games you train for and want to play in,” says Tuite. “Our meetings are always fairly full-blooded. You know you’ve been in a match after playing Clontarf.”
You can donate to Terenure College RFC Charity Day 2025 here.
