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Marist College 40
(Pádraig O’Neill, Joseph McSharry, Paul O’Sullivan, Owen Egan, Darragh Murray, Andrew Cotton tries; Andrew Cotton five cons).
CBS Roscommon 3
(Harry Waldron pen)
Kevin Egan at Marist College, Athlone
When the half-time whistle in Athlone this afternoon, a youthful Roscommon CBS side had put themselves right in contention to pull off one of the biggest upsets of the domestic rugby season so far in Connacht.
Marist College, reigning Senior Cup champions and a side laden with players who have earned international and provincial representation, were ahead 14-3 but that was after playing with the aid of a strong breeze, and with the last score of the first half a try from Joseph McSharry.
The second half began with a soaring kick from CBS fullback Jack Finn that went from one 22m line to the other, before scuttling out on the right side of the line to give the underdogs the throw. Pádraig O’Farrell claimed the lineout and after he was brought to ground, Marist infringed at the ruck and the option was there for CBS to kick the points and ratchet up the pressure even further.
They went for the tap and go but didn’t manage to convert it into a score. Three minutes later Marist were still inside their own half, but they took the chance to show the incredible potency of their back division when two quick passes moved the ball out to Paul O’Sullivan, and the winger exploded down the right-hand sideline to cover 70 metres and score.
It was a stunning statement of Marist’s threat from anywhere on the pitch, and it visibly broke the resolve of CBS, who simply didn’t have the same ability to create tryscoring opportunities.
For the remainder of the second half, kicking wasn’t really an option for Marist, but it didn’t matter as they moved the ball around with thought and dexterity, sucking in CBS defenders and creating overlaps that eventually yielded three more tries.
In a game where there wasn’t much to call between the sides up front, the fact that five of starting backs got on the scoresheet tells a lot about the strength of this Marist group, with half-backs Owen Egan and Darragh Murray each running in superb scores to crown good overall performances.
Fullback Thomas Cotton ended the second half just as McSharry ended the first with a driving finish from close range, then dropkicking the conversion to round off a fine display with the boot from the Buccaneers all-rounder.
It was all very different for the opening 35 minutes where Ireland U-19 international Leo Anic was the beating heart of a strong forward pack for CBS, while Harry Waldron defied the difficult conditions to keep pressure off his side with some fine early kicks.
Six of the first seven penalties of the game were conceded by Marist who struggled to keep their composure in the face of some excellent tackling, Jack Finn in particular saving two tries with incredible last-ditch stops. The first of those penalties resulted in a successful kick at goal from Waldron, further boosting the confidence of the side that edged out Summerhill College to reach their first Cup semi-final in four years.
The offloading and close-range handling of Marist was always going to create openings however and they got off the mark through Pádraig O’Neill in the corner while down to 14 players midway through the first half.
Cotton’s conversion was hooked in beautifully by the breeze from the sideline, but as much as anything, that illustrated how valuable the wind was, and how Marist needed more cushion on the scoreboard.
Even when McSharry gave them that just before half-time, the window of opportunity was still open. But while this was a valuable experience for a CBS side with 11 starters set to return to the school for the 2026/27 season, Marist are the Cup holders, and primed to win now. Their sensational second half left no-one in any doubt about that.
MARIST COLLEGE: Andrew Cotton; Paul O’Sullivan, Oisín O’Donoghue, Darragh Glennon, Pádraig O’Neill; Darragh Murray, Owen Egan; Hugo Hannon, Adam Murphy, Peter Daniel Sunny; James Kelly, Peter Bourke; Rueben Colleran, John Finnan, Kyle Byrne.
Replacements: Joseph McSharry for Kelly (22), Kelly for Finnan (50), Donncha Dullea for Hannon (53), Rory O’Connor for O’Neill (59), Callum McCormack for Murphy (61), Michael Doolan for Sunny (61), Ciaran West for Colleran (62).
ROSCOMMON CBS: Jack Finn; Rhys Ward, Cian Kiernan, Cian Trimble, Eamon Coyle; Harry Waldron, Daniel Fleming; Conor Diffley, Matthew Donnelly, Cathal Mulry; Andrej Anic, Harry Kilcoyne; Pádraig O’Farrell, Jack Keane, Leo Anic.
Replacements: Sam Walsh for Ward (half-time), Jeff Dolan for Fleming (48), Jack Walsh for Donnelly (48), Brian O’Connor for S Walsh (60)
Referee: Cian Hough.
