‘The Buy-In From The Lads Has Been Good’ – Hopkins On Buccs’ Plans To Bounce Back

Buccs finished at the foot of the table on 18 points, with only three wins out of their 18 matches, as they suffered relegation back to Division 2A for the current campaign.

Their opening fixture on Saturday is at home to Instonians, a team high on confidence having secured three consecutive promotions. The Belfast side have steamrolled their way up the divisions since making the jump from the junior ranks.

Buccaneers captain Frankie Hopkins admits that last season was a real struggle, but he is hopeful that the Pirates’ mostly new-look and youthful squad can gel quickly and pick up some encouraging early results.

“We’ve had a good pre-season, we’ve been back since the start of July and we’ve got an awful lot of work done,” he told IrishRugby.ie, speaking at the Energia All-Ireland League season launch in Dublin.

“But we’ve had a big turnover of players. We’re looking to play a bit differently, and the buy-in from the lads has been good.”

The skilful scrum half talked about how he dealt with those difficult times as captain, admitting: “Last season was tough. We went up two years ago and were flying high for those first six months, and we ended up just missing out on the promotion play-offs two years ago.

“Last season we lost some guys that would have been there the season before. It was hard. In terms of being captain, I had a lot of help from some of the older lads who would have been captain before.

“It wasn’t just me, I could really lean on some guys. The likes of Danny Qualter, Martin Staunton, and Shane Layden. Last year was difficult because you are under the pump for most of the year, always on the back foot.

“It probably got into my head a little bit about being captain, but my main focus this season is just to concentrate on my own game and not worry about the captaincy stuff too much. It’s secondary to the fact you need to be playing well.”

Some of the Connacht Academy players could feature for Buccs over the course of the league, depending on their availability. 21-year-old hooker Matthew Victory looked solid in his first season with the club.

They will be hoping too that they can call on former Ireland Under-20 internationals Daniel Hawkshaw and Harry West, while new arrivals Lucca D’Ambola, Jared Brady, Joaquin del Olmo, and Reece Henderson will be keen to hit the ground running.

Hopkins highlighted how important it is for Buccs to give All-Ireland League exposure to their most promising Under-20 players and ensure that their personal connection to the club grows even stronger.

“We have a really good underage set-up. If you look at Connacht youths rugby, I think there were weekends last year where our Instagram was full of news about underage finals at U-14s, U-16s, and U-18s, all the time.

“We do have a really good underage structure in Bucaneers but it’s just about making sure we continue to invest and carry that over through all the age-grades, and for those two years at U-20 level into senior, where you can sometimes lose some lads through college and stuff.

“We just need to give them opportunities to play senior rugby, a stepping stone that will make them want to stick around and play for us.”

Back rower Paddy Egan is one of those U-20s who is said to be ‘pulling up trees’ in pre-season. The big ball carrier will be looking to make his mark at senior level, while there are others waiting in the wings, also eager to make an impression.

The Buccaneers coaching ticket remains the same from last season. Paul Byrne (pictured below) is head coach, assisted by Benny Gilligan and David Henshaw. Their aim will be to keep Buccs’ status as the premier Connacht club.

Both Galway Corinthians and Galwegians gained promotion from their respective divisions last season, while Sligo have had top four finishes in Division 2B the last two seasons, before losing out in the play-offs.

Buccs will play Corinthians either side of the Christmas break, in what promises to be an enthralling couple of derby clashes. Hopkins expressed his excitement for this match-up already.

“It’s going to be great. We have Corinthians either side of Christmas as Friday night games. They should be great occasions, I’m really looking forward to them,” he said.

“We’ve been a division or two ahead of them in the last few years, and we still want to retain our tag as the top team in Connacht. That’s going to be a huge challenge for us.

“Corinthians are obviously going to be full of confidence, they’re a team on the rise. They managed to get the promotion. We got relegated, and we have to find that confidence. It’s huge derby for us and we can’t wait for it to come around.”

East Galway native Hopkins started playing rugby with the Ballinasloe Under-11s. He was educated in Garbally College, where many of the current Connacht stars went to school, and is very proud of his roots.

“Being a Ballinasloe man, it’s great to see so many from the area doing so well. Especially in Garbally. We won a Senior Cup when I was in 5th year, we got to the final the year after that, and then I think the lads won four out of the next six Senior Cups.

“That included the likes of Shane Jennings, Colm Reilly, and Oisin McCormack, who are all in the professional system. Of course, there’s Matthew and John Devine too.

“On the Women’s side, you’ve got Béibhinn Parsons and Aoibheann Reilly, both players for the Ireland 15s and Sevens. Béibhinn went to the Olympics, and Aoibheann would have if she wasn’t injured. It’s great for the town,” he added.

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