AIB LEAGUE DIVISION ONE BALLYMENA 12 BELFAST HARLEQUINS 20 Eaton Park

BELFAST Harlequins won this Ulster derby at Eaton Park yesterday to move a step closer and leave them only needing a single point to secure their Division 1 status for another season. But it was a dour spectacle only lit up briefly, in the second-half, when Harlequins scored the second of two tries.

A game that promised much and played in ideal conditions was a huge disappointment. It never lacked a cutting edge between two evenly-matched sides, but it did lack any real quality and what little there was came from the visitors. It was significant too that in 80 minutes' of rugby the home side failed to score a single try and in fact rarely looked like creating one, such was their failings behind the scrum.

It's a defeat that leaves Ballymena needing a single point from their last match against Cork Con in two weeks' time to guarantee themselves Division 1 rugby next season. They might yet regret a rush of blood to the head seconds from time that saw them penalised on half-way . . . allowing visiting out-half O'Connor to land a penalty that opened up an eight-point gap and so deprived the home side of even the consolation of a bonus point.

But that in many respects typified Ballymena's afternoon. They were never short of heart or commitment, but too often they were guilty of making basic elementary errors and taking wrong options. In contrast, their opponents had no such problems. They were slow to settle and it was Ballymena on top briefly in the opening minutes who eased into a six-point lead with two penalties by scrum half Craig Woods.

But as the half progressed you could sense the visitors easing their way into the game and four minutes before the break it was no surprise when they capitalised on increasing pressure for Andy Ward to get over from a rolling maul with out-half O'Connor adding the conversion. Then, with half time in sight, Woods landed his third penalty of the half to restore Ballymena's lead, 9-7.

Five minutes into the second half, an Andy Maxwell drop goal after good Ballymena pressure edged them further ahead 12-7, but that was as good as it got for the home side. For the final quarter was a story of Harlequins hauling their opponents back and out-half Niall O'Connor offered a taste of what was to come with a delightful blindside break that cut the home defence to shreds.

Ballymena's discomfort at this stage became apparent when they had Pat Steenkamp yellow-carded.

Harlequins piled on further pressure and 20 minutes from time scrum-half Paul Marshall darted over under the posts with out-half O'Connor adding the conversion.

Ballymena were now fighting a hopeless battle, pinned back in their own half for long periods with Harlequins full of industry and enterprise threatening to pile on further points. The points that Harlequins threatened duly arrived in the last 10 minutes from the boot of out-half O'Connor, his second penalty almost on the stroke of time, depriving Ballymena of the bonus point and leaving them with an anxious trip to Cork Con in a fortnight's time.

BALLYMENA C Smith; J McGrugan, S Young, P Budina, A Maxwell; S Paul, C Woods; A Kirkpatrick, M Harshaw, S Shaw; I Caldwell, A Graham; G Moore, N McMillan, C Henry Subs P Steenkamp for G Moore, 30 mins; D Best for A Graham, 70 mins; D Drake for J McGrugan, 76 mins HARLEQUINS M Kettyle; J Lowe, D Cave, K Pyper, P McKenzie; N O'Connor, P Marshall; N Conlon, S Philpott, J Andress; G Rourke, L Stevenson; A Ward, C Atkinson, A Gillespie.

Referee P Fitzgibbon (Munster)