Denis Hickie (St Mary's College, Leinster, Ireland).

School: St Mary's College.

"I suppose my abiding memories would be of the big match buzz. Match day was an incredible experience, where you were full of nerves, unable to concentrate in class and just anticipating the game that afternoon. I seem to remember that haircuts were an integral part of pre-match preparation in the eyes of some players.

"It was the culmination of a year's work and that in itself helped to exaggerate the tension. I played on the senior cup team for three years and it didn't get easier in terms of nerves.

"It's one thing that Irish rugby has over other countries, an early exposure to pressure occasions. I experienced every emotion in the three years that I played in the senior cup. In my first season we were beaten in the first round - we were fancied to do well - by a very good Roscrea team that went on to reach the semi-final. I was outhalf that day and played badly as I recall.

"The second year we lost to Clongowes, having led 19-3 at the interval. Richie Governey, now with Terenure, kicked a conversion in injury time to snatch a win. Then, in my last year, we won the cup after a replay (Hickie modestly does not mention that he scored the winning try in a 7-3 replay success)."

Ronan O'Gara (Cork Constitution, Munster, Ireland).

School: Presentation Brothers College, Cork.

"IT IS a traditional rugby school where there was a big emphasis on the sport. In my case, I suppose rugby took precedence over everything else. I captained the junior cup team to the trophy and the following year made the senior cup panel under Declan Kidney. I suffered a broken wrist that season. In fairness, I don't think I would have made the team anyway. The outhalf spot was between Dave O'Brien, now playing with Clontarf, and myself and he was certainly doing well enough to retain the position. The team that year, which included Brian O'Meara, lost to Crescent in the final.

"The following year I was made captain and we were lucky enough to win the cup. I mean that in the sense that out opponents in the final, Crescent - a team that included David Wallace - had about 10 kicks to win the thing and missed out. I didn't kick that year; our scrumhalf Eddie Hogan O'Connell was the main man. Yeah, my mother did present the cup I think she was more pleased about it than I was.

"I remember the old haircut was factored into the build-up. At junior level I had a long fringe and blade two everywhere else, trying to look cool. Declan trained us exceptionally hard at senior level. It's the hardest training I have ever done."

Eric Elwood (Galwegians, Connacht, Ireland).

School: Colaiste Iognaid, Galway.

"I DIDN'T start playing rugby until my third year in school, having played other sports in first and second year. It was a six-year cycle in the `Jez.' My recollections are hazy about junior level, but I don't think we did particularly well that year. I won a senior cup medal in fourth year, though, as a 15-year-old.

"I remember that final against St Joseph's (Bish) which I think attracted the biggest ever crowd for a schools final of about 10,000-12,000 to the Sportsground. It was intimidating stuff. I spent the game sitting on the bench, dreading the possibility that I might get called on to play. "Stephen Carty, who went on to play with Galwegians, was outhalf and was struggling a little with his place-kicking and that really was the only reason I was on the bench. We won a tight game and in celebrating afterwards the team went off to a rented house in Inverin for a party and a few drinks.

In fact, the first time I ever touched an alcoholic drink was on a retreat with the `Jez' in Roundstone. I was 18-years-old and it was a can of Heineken. The year after winning, we lost in the final to Garbally. They were good times and I really enjoyed playing as many sports as possible to get out of classes."

Brian Robinson (Ballymena, Ulster, Ireland)

School: Cambridge House, Belfast.

"I WAS one of the first batch of boys that entered Cambridge House as it had previously been an all-girls school. Even though we shared the same building, there was an invisible line which you didn't cross and there was no mixing until the joint sixth form. There wasn't much of a rugby tradition but under the first XV coach, Martin Brown, we did reasonably well.

"I would have started off as a back and it was only my last year that I moved to the pack. As I recall I wasn't a particularly good back. I think I started on the wing and gradually moved into outhalf. In my last year, I was about six foot four, so I moved to the pack.

"In my final year I played with Dean Macartney, who was two years younger, and captained the team in winning the Shield, a competition for first round losers. It represented quite an achievement for the school. We were beaten by Dungannon in the first round of the cup, their team containing one Paddy Johns.

"We took our rugby seriously, nipping away during free periods to practise, but there was and still is a purity to schools rugby; it hasn't the negativity of the senior game. A lot of my friends went to Ballymena Academy and we enjoyed great banter. I suppose it filled a lot of our lives. I really enjoyed those days."