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Connacht Schools Senior “B” Cup Final
Coláiste Bhaile Chláir 20
(Donagh Kilcommins, Ethan Crowe tries; Dylan Casserly two pens, two cons)
Presentation Athenry 15
(Dylan Wynne, Darragh Kearney tries; Adam Laffey one try, one con)
Kevin Egan at Ballina RFC
Ethan Crowe’s late try for Coláiste Bhaile Chláir means that the Claregalway school added their name to the Connacht Schools Senior ‘B’ Cup roll of honour this afternoon in Ballin, and in the process, they gained a measure of revenge against neighbours Presentation Athenry for their enthralling 36-27 defeat in the corresponding fixture 12 months ago.
Today’s tie wasn’t quite as open or as free-flowing, but it was no less absorbing as Coláiste Bhaile Chláir’s superiority in the scrum and in the tight exchanges was balanced out by Presentation’s advantage when it came to line breaks and creativity.
Of course such summaries are always something of a generalisation, as seen when Éanna Flaherty came up with a wonderful offload in the tackle as he was being forced out over the right-hand sideline, setting up Donagh Kilcommins for the first try of the game, duly converted by Dylan Casserly.
That score was the least that CBC deserved for the control and possession they enjoyed in the first 15 minutes, but this wasn’t so much a game of two halves as a game of four quarters, with Presentation Athenry playing their best rugby in the 30 minutes either side of half-time.
The reigning champions relied heavily on the work of their back three, particularly the hugely impressive Michael Lewis at full back, to sweep up a lot of threats in the opening 20 minutes. This was central to their survival, with CBC consistently breaking the gain line and making hard yards with tight carries.
A solid lineout was key to Presentation Athenry working their way back into the game and a yellow card for winger Pádraic Ryan – awarded after CBC were guilty of persistent offside offences – opened the door for Presentation to finally make their breakthrough with 20 minutes played.
A typically assertive lineout grab from Éanna Cox set up a strong Presentation maul ten metres from the CBC line and it was Monivea club player Dylan Wynne who added the decisive burst of power three phases later to drive over the line to score.
The second quarter was all about Presentation Athenry laying siege to the CBC line, but for a long time it looked as if excellent goal-line defence from the Claregalway students would keep them out and preserve the narrow lead, exacerbated when Casserly was on target again from a penalty.
There was nothing any defender could do to prevent Presentation taking the lead with a superb score before half-time however. Niall Fleet racked up the metres gained with some outstanding carries throughout this contest, and when he pinned CBC back on their own line again after a strong drive towards the right corner, quick passing across the line and a sublime reverse pass from Shane Lally allowed Darragh Kearney to touch down.
Adam Laffey added the points to make it 12-10 at half-time in Presentation’s favour, and the outhalf was again on the mark from the tee in the third quarter to stretch the lead further. This was the period of the game however where Coláiste Bhaile Chláir had to dig in to stay in the game, with the key play once again coming from Éanna Flaherty as he held up Vincent Gannon when the Athenry winger looked to have crossed the line in the corner.
In a mirror image of the second quarter, CBC were the dominant side for the latter part of the second half, and two scrum penalties illustrated where the fuel was coming for their drive.
Dylan Casserly split the uprights from the second of those offences but for all their territorial and possession advantage, the clock was winding down and pressure was mounting. Again reflecting the flow of the first half in reverse, Dylan Wynne was yellow carded and that numerical advantage was to prove crucial in the decisive play, which was three minutes from the end.
Robert Dolan and Casserly made the hard yards to set up the attack, and after play was shifted across the pitch and the defence was stretched, Brian McHugh identified the space and deftly floated a chip kick into the path of Ethan Crowe. The winger juggled the ball to add to the tension, but kept his focus, kept his hands steady, and touched down.
Casserly’s splendid conversion left Presentation Athenry chasing a try, but Presentation’s last drive for the line ended with John Farragher making a heroic tackle to hold up Darragh Kearney, and that allowed Coláiste Bhaile Chláir to secure the turnover on the next phase, the final act in their groundbreaking victory.
COLÁISTE BHAILE CHLÁIR: Brian McHugh; Pádraic Ryan, Éanna Flaherty, Mark Cullinane, Eoin Higgins; Dylan Casserly, John Farragher; Seán Cullen, Euan Kavanagh, Donagh Kilcommins; Mark Concannon, Dara Noone; Luke Keaveny, Robert Dolan, Gabriel Timothy.
Replacements: Ethan Forde for Ryan (half-time), Matthew Laffey for Cullen (half-time), Eoin McGrath for Dolan (69).
PRESENTATION ATHENRY: Michael Lewis; Vincent Gannon, Shane Lally, Darragh Kearney, Luke Molloy; Adam Laffey, Conor Curran; Dylan Wynne, Oisín Meehan, Jack Freeney; Éanna Cox, Rian Collins; Matthew Cox, Niall Fleet, James O’Donovan Greaney.
Replacements: Ethan O’Brien for Gannon (47), Mac Dara Ó Muieadhaigh for Freeney (55),
Referee: Mark Harrigan
