Long Eaton RFC chasing Papa Johns title
Murray McConnell, 30, is player-coach for the Nottingham based club who are vying to be crowned North Plate champions.
The next step on their road to the final at Darlington Mowden Park is a trip to Lutterworth, and McConnell says the pain of missing out on a league triumph is fuelling the side’s last shot at glory.
“We’ve had a great year and it’s nice to have a new focus and motivation for the guys,” said McConnell. "We won our league last year, which was great but then we couldn’t repeat the feat this year, so the cup gives us a second opportunity to win something, and the guys are desperate to do that. It’s been good in the past few weeks, you can tell by how hungry the guys are to do well that they are really enjoying the competition.”
Long Eaton progressed to the quarterfinals with a nerve-shredding 27-26 win over Market Harborough, leaving them just two games away from a final at the home of Allianz Premier 15s side DMP Sharks.
According to McConnell, the prize of playing at a 25,500-seater stadium is proving a huge incentive for his players.
“It would be fantastic if we can get that far,” said the scrumhalf. "The guys don’t get opportunities to play at nice grounds like that too often and being not too far away from us, we would love to get there as it would be a great day out for the club.
“Cup rugby is enjoyable with a different focus to the league; the pressure is off a little bit but we’re obviously still desperate to win knockout games. You must set your tactics up a little differently, you don’t need to worry about bonus-points, it’s all about getting that win. It’s been great fun.”
The first edition of the Papa Johns Community Cup is taking place after the league season as part of a restructure to support playing numbers.
McConnell, who played four times for Glasgow Warriors, believes fans too are relishing the new end-of-season fun.
“The club was really busy for the Market Harborough game, nice weather at this time of year really helps, and people really buy into knockout rugby,” he added. "Having the cup at the back end of the season keeps the games competitive.
“For clubs in the middle of the table the league can peter out a little bit, so having a competitive knockout game at the end of the season is great.”
