BUCCANEERS 33 BLACKROCK COLLEGE 28
BUCCANEERS and Blackrock College served up a cracking contest in their J.P.Fanagan Leinster League Premier 2 ‘Super Six Group One’ clash at Dubarry Park on Sunday when Buccs came out on top 33-28 in a thriller. In doing so, the Pirates have put themselves in pole position to claim the title whilst they also retained the Ray McLoughlin Cup.
Buccs made two personnel changes from their previous outing. Injury ruled Patrick Egan out and Neil Botes returned in the backrow while Lorcan McCormack started on the left wing with Dylan Duffy switching to fullback.
Buccs playing towards the clubhouse end and facing a cool breeze opened the scoring after only 6 minutes. Following a lineout on the stand side just inside the Rock half, Conor Ryan broke away and slick hands and fast running was rewarded when Tom Cotton dived over for an unconverted try wide on the left.
The Pirates second try 8 minutes later was created in similar fashion when after Niall Tallon won lineout possession the ball was moved smartly to Duffy who had the pace to outrun the cover from 30 metres out for another try wide on the left. On this occasion Charlie O’Carroll struck a super conversion for a 12-0 lead in as many minutes.
Blackrock responded to apply a sustained spell of pressure during which Callum Kelly was yellow-carded when his knock-on was deemed to be deliberate. This led to a fortuitous try for the metropolitans as the ball slipped from Jamie Rogan’s grasp before he fell on it. Lochlann Maher added the conversion.
But Buccs struck back almost instantly with the hard-running Cotton’s surging 23rd minute break earning the centre a second try at The Bounty corner. O’Carroll added a sweet conversion and then tagged on a penalty to extend Buccs advantage to 22-7 while in-between a forward pass ruled out a Ryan touchdown.
Rock then enjoyed another spell of good territory which resulted in a penalty try and a visit to the sin-bin for Ryan. The exchanges over-heated a couple of times coming up to the interval and Abu Saka became the third Buccaneer to have time in the sin-bin where he was joined by Blackrock’s David Crowley. Nevertheless, the midlanders led 22-14 at half-time.
Three minutes into the second half Botes and Eoin Murtagh both made good ground to send Cotton rampaging forward and he off-loaded deliciously to O’Carroll who held off the challenge of James Clancy to score Buccs fourth try. His conversion was not awarded by the referee who then ruled out another home touchdown due to offside.
Duffy then had to be alert when College countered after an injudicious penalty kick for touch and Rock narrowed the arrears when Rogan squeezed over for a 56th minute try at the posts. Six minutes later an untypical gap opened in the home defence for Maher to dart in for a try which he also converted.
But either side of this try O’Carroll wisely and cooly slotted over a brace of penalties that ensured Buccaneers would take the spoils on the double on a 33-28 scoreline. Their bonus point win proved crucial as it leaves the destination of the title in Buccs hands entering the final straight.
This was a magnificent encounter with both teams playing their part in an exhilarating contest as befits the top two sides. The Pirates courage and conviction was duly rewarded, being a player down for 30 minutes, and their enterprise and sustained endeavour yielded a memorable victory. Every player wearing the black and gold contributed significantly to this win with Cotton and Botes being exceptional.
After the match the Ray McLoughlin Cup was presented to victorious captain Conor Sheehan by proud club president Lorna Stuart Trainor. The team are holding a Table Quiz in The Bounty on Thursday week, March 13th, and their performances this season surely warrant a big crowd supporting it.
BUCCANEERS:- D.Duffy; C.Kelly, T.Cotton, T.Sheehan, L.McCormack; C.O’Carroll, D.Connolly; S.Doyle, S.Rohan, R.Foxe; A.Saka, C.Sheehan (captain); C.Ryan, N.Botes and N.Tallon. Replacements:- E.Murtagh (for Tallon, h/t), N.Tallon (for Murtagh, 44 mins), A.Oates (for Foxe, 65 mins) and E.Murtagh (for Saka, 74 mins), E.McMickan, L.Giles, G.Racca, L.Cassidy, E.Joyce-Whyte, D.Martin and M.Fallon.
BLACKROCK COLLEGE:- J.Clancy; C.Traynor-Russell, A.Quinn, H.Dixon, S.O’Connor; L.Maher, D.Gilvarry; T.Walsh, J.Rogan (captain), E.O’Brien; D.Leane, D.Crowley; A.Golden, T.Byrnes and P.Bramley. Replacements:- D.Begley, W.Keyes, S.Lynam, C.Lambe, C.Yaxley, M.Cranfield and J.O’Malley.
Referee:- Cian Hough (Connacht).
