Following Leinster's Heineken Cup win in Edinburgh twelve months ago, Longford RFC was one of the first clubs in the province to host a visit of the trophy.

It was fitting, therefore, that Longford was one of the last clubs to have the trophy for its annual Youth Awards ceremony, which took place this year in Newtownforbes Community Centre.

Word only filtered through on the day of the awards and so it was a great surprise for the younger members of the club to get a rare chance to see the much-coveted prize up close. The club would like to thank Leinster branch and Jack Hanratty for bringing the trophy to Longford.

Players from U6 to U17 made up the large attendance at the awards, which was hosted by Leinster Youth Development Officer for Longford, Steve Coy.

Prior to the awards being handed out, Longford RFC President Martin Maguire and Youths Chairperson Hugh Connolly addressed the players and their families, congratulating them on another wonderful season at underage level and said they looked forward to seeing the players back again for the new season in September.

Jack Hanratty also said a few words and thanked the club and the players for their continued support of Leinster rugby.

Following the presentation of awards, players and family members took the opportunity to have their photo taken with the Heineken Cup. A selection of photos from the event, including the awards, are on this website. Click here.