Having led Bangor Rugby Club back onto the field of All Ireland Rugby last season, Phil has agreed to carry on as 1st XV and club captain for 2017-18, having received the unanimous support and vote of confidence from the senior players and coaching staff.

Phil is under no illusions as to what lies ahead as Bangor strive to improve upon last season's performance. As he puts it, "The honeymoon period is over and we now know the challenges facing us. However, with the return from injury of several key players, and the addition of new and exciting players, everybody is working hard to be in the best shape possible."

The hard work on strength conditioning that has already been put in at Aurora over the past weeks now moves to the next phase when formal pre-season training starts on Saturday 15th July. If the level of commitment shown so far is any indication as to the desire of the players to succeed, then we're in for an exciting season.