Clontarf 12 St Mary's College 18HAVING STUPIDLY done away with the play-offs, the IRFU and the club game were fortunate that the two best club sides in the country served up a potential title decider in the penultimate round of matches.
Effectively semi-professional rugby, as an advert for the Ulster Bank league, this was an entertaining, hugely competitive and ultra physical game of no little skill despite a capricious wind and a rock-hard pitch.
Striking stealthily for three tries by their wingers in an 11-minute spell either side of half-time – “championship minutes” indeed – and defending quite magnificently for huge chunks of the game, this win pushes St Mary’s two points ahead of Clontarf. A win of any kind at home to Young Munster next week will clinch their second AIL title and first since 2000.
Mary’s had the sharper cutting edge and the stronger, more hard-working defence, in their line speed, their tackling efficiency, choke tackle effectiveness and their work ethic.
Peter Smyth, hooker on that title-winning team, has moulded a team a largely home-grown, local side of huge spirit and togetherness as witnessed by their last play 22-20 win over Clontarf before Christmas and the two comeback wins which preceded this one.
“We’ve a lot of senior guys who have been around the club scene for a long, long time and opportunities like this weren’t going to come along for ever,” said Smyth. “But I’ve just said to the lads if you thought that was pressure you can ratchet it up by 100 per cent next week because I really respect Munsters and (coach) Mike Prendergast and we’ve had great battles with them over the years. Obviously we’re in the driving seat but nothing’s won and things can change quickly.”
Clontarf will reflect ruefully on their first league defeat at Castle Avenue this season, not least electing to go to the corner with a kickable penalty in the fifth minute, and making the same decision in the 66th, 71st and, after St Mary’s had been reduced to 14 men with the sinbinning of Mark Sexton, the 77th minute, as well as Richie Lane’s brace of missed first-half penalties.
St Mary’s Gavin Dunne also missed a penalty and a couple of conversions in the capricious crossfield wind. But eschewing three-pointers was all the more puzzling as a draw would have left Clontarf a point ahead with a vastly superior points’ difference.
For much of the first 35 minutes or so, they looked the likelier winners; Barry O’Mahony, Simon Crawford the busy Aaron Dundon and co making the hard yards as their pack bossed possession before, eventually, Killian Lett, the immensely strong Enniscorthy 24-year-old, bounced off Darren Hudson and dragged Maurice O’Driscoll, Stephen Grissing and Hudson over the lone with him.
The first of St Mary’s triple whammy was a superb counter-attack finished off by Conor Hogan with a deft chip over Noel Reid and gather after Philip Brophy’s take and Dunne’s long skip pass. When Ben Reilly failed to gather Hudson’s up-and-under, the winger latched onto it, stepped Richie Lane and eluded Sam Cronin’s despairing covering tackle.
Within five minutes Hogan put Mary’s on the front foot from a lost ’Tarf lineout, and Dunne put width on the ball for Hudson to score in the corner from Damien Hall’s deft transfer.
Clontarf rolled up their sleeves and went to the corner for a patient sequence of eight close-in rumbles culminating in Niall Treston’s try. Virtually all of that last 20 was spent in the Mary’s 22, but Clontarf were either too lateral or narrow, not least when Lett could have put Mick McGrath over after Reilly came within inches of the try line. Clontarf must now beat Lansdowne away next Saturday and hope for a favour from Munsters to win their first AIL crown.
“In fairness to Mary’s they defended very, very well,” said ’Tarf coach Andy Wood. “I was delighted with the support and the occasion, but not with the result.”
Scoring sequence: 17 mins Dunne pen 0-3; 23 Lett try, Lane con 7-3; 39 C Hogan try 7-8; (half-time 7-8); 45 Hudson try 7-13; 50 Hudson try 7-18; 58 Treston try 12-18.
CLONTARF: R Lane; M McGrath, K Lett, E Ryan, T McCoy; N Reid, S Cronin; K Dorian, A Dundon, N Treston, B Reilly, J Chipman, S Crawford, B O'Mahony (capt), F Cogan. Replacements: D O'Meara for Cronin (33-40 and 83 mins), A D'Arcy for Chipman (45), D O'Shea for Lett (79 mins), Chipman for O'Mahony (66 mins). Not used:J Larby, T Furlong.
ST MARY'S:G Dunne; D Hudson, S Grissing, M O'Driscoll, C Hogan; P Brophy, M D'Arcy, C McMahon, Richard Sweeney, Robert Sweeney, D Hall, S Bradshaw, B OFlanagan, G Austin, H Hogan (capt). Replacements: C Lilly for D'Arcy (24-34 mins) and for Hudson (73 mins), C Ruddock for O'Flanagan (30), M Sexton for O'Driscoll (71). Not used: D Kilbride, R Brosnan.
Referee: Leo Colgan (IRFU).
