The Dublin Rebels and University College Dublin (UCD) square off in the 2024 Irish Championship Game, Shamrock Bowl XXXVI, Saturday, July 27 at Dubarry Park in Athlone.
Both teams finished the regular season with 7-1 records with their only loss coming against each other. UCD defeated the Rebels 42-40 in the season opener but Dublin got their revenge in the second last game of the regular season, edging UCD 18-16.
They have also faced each other in the title game twice in the last two years. The Rebels defeated UCD 40-34 to capture the 2023 crown while UCD beat Dublin 52-24 to take home the championship in 2022.
Both teams certainly have the weapons. Rebels Ty Henry and UCD’s Arun Mooney are by far the top quarterbacks in the league, and they’re armed with playmakers. The Rebels Greg Johnson and UCD’s Tom Donovan are just two examples of that.
It’s almost impossible to predict the outcome of this one. In the season opener, it ended up being a case of who had the ball last when UCD downed the Rebels 42-40. The second outing was much the same only with tough defenses from both sides. And that could well be the deciding factor this time around as well. UCD looked rusty against the Trojans in Belfast midway through the season but silenced any doubts with 60 point performances in two their next three games. In between, they dropped that close one to the Rebels. They then shut out the Trojans 44-0 in the playoffs.
After dropping that opening game to UCD, the Rebels won seven in a row and then beat the South Dublin Panthers in the semifinals.
This is definitely a heavyweight showdown.
Dublin Rebels vs University College Dublin
July 27, 19:00 CET (7 pm, 1 pm EDT)
