Saturday December 14th

AIL Division 1B Round 9

The Mardyke

 

UCC   25      Nenagh Ormond   34

 

Nenagh try scorers: Evan Murphy, Jake O’Kelly, Conor O’Shaughnessy, Willie Coffey

Conor McMahon – 2 penalties, 4 conversions

 

UCC try scorers: Mike Cogan, Adam Wrona, Rory O’Shaughnessy

Gene O’Leary Kareem – 2 penalties, 2 conversions

 

Referee: Henry Richmond

 

Report by Mike McMahon

 
This was surely one of the games of the season as Nenagh Ormond finally overcame a gallant UCC in a captivating contest which had the large crowd at The Mardyke on the edge of their seats right to the final whistle.  Finishing with four tries and a bonus point, Nenagh maintained their push for promotion with a fifth consecutive win but for UCC to come away from this game empty handed was a very harsh return for the students.

The home side were on top for large parts of this game and played some scintillating rugby which would have put most teams away but the Nenagh defence was outstanding – as it has been for much of the season.  UCC got off to the perfect start as they forced a penalty directly from the kick-off which was confidently dispatched by centre Gene O’Leary Kareem for an early 3-0 lead. Nenagh had a chance to respond almost immediately with a penalty effort of their own but it was pulled wide by centre Conor McMahon. A Nenagh fumble on 8 minutes gave UCC’s Darragh O’Shaughnessy the chance to hack through and chase for the line. With a try looking certain, Nenagh’s Rob Buckley saw no other option but to haul his opponent to the ground – an action which earned UCC a penalty 5 meters out and a yellow card for the wing forward.  Down a man, the Nenagh defensive line could not resist the resultant UCC forward drive on this occasion, and prop Mike Cogan touched down for his side’s first try. O’Leary Kareem was successful with the conversion and the students were 10 points up with as many minutes played.

 

It was crucial for Nenagh that they stayed in touch during this period and on 15 minutes they held onto possession well to work their way into a promising field position. Scrum half Charlie O’Doherty attacked down the right from the base of a scrum and as the ball was recycled, full back Josh Rowland almost broke through in the corner. As Nenagh worked their way infield, open side flanker Evan Murphy picked from the base of a ruck and dotted down to open his team’s account. McMahon added the extras.

Restored to the full complement with the return of Buckley, Nenagh started to get more into the game and won a series of penalties which culminated in a lineout close to the UCC line. The throw was well taken by number 8 John O’Flaherty and tapped back to second rower Jake O’Kelly who swiveled his way through a gap to touch down unopposed. McMahon was again successful with the conversion and Nenagh had their noses in front.

Their lead did not last long however as Nenagh once again failed to deal with the restart and UCC attacked down the left from the resultant scrum. A penalty for offside gave the students a chance to set up a lineout maul, from which hooker Adam Wrona broke free to score in the corner. O’Leary Kareem was wide with the conversion this time but made no mistake with a penalty 10 minutes later to give his side a four point lead with half time looming.

Just when it looked as if the home side would take that lead into the break, Nenagh struck again for their third try. This time it was John O’Flaherty who picked up a loose ball in midfield and made 20 metres before finding winger Conor O’Shaughnessy in support. He still had work to do but rounded the full back to touch down under the posts. With the conversion a formality, that left the half time score at 21-18 and delicately poised in favour of the visitors.

Nenagh began the second half well and carved out a couple of early chances to increase their lead. First Rowland combined with wing Patrick Scully to almost get over in the corner and then UCC finally cleared the danger when winning a penalty from a Nenagh scrum 5 metres out.

The home backline had looked dangerous throughout and 10 minutes into the half, they engineered the best try of the game. Attacking off quick lineout ball, they worked the ball to the right wing and then back infield to send O’Leary Kareem clear. He drew full back Josh Rowland before releasing centre Rory O’Shaughnessy to scamper under the posts and put his side in front once again. The conversion took the margin out to four points.

A McMahon penalty midway through the second half got Nenagh back to within a point and a second penalty from him gave the lead back to the visitors in what was becoming a topsy turvy, tension filled contest.

As the game entered the final quarter, UCC launched wave after wave of attack, rallied by the home support. Only two points down, any sort of a score would have given the advantage back to the students. A break through the middle by flanker Sean Edogbo was only foiled by a last-ditch tap tackle and shortly afterwards the home side seemed certain to score but knocked on going over the line. The siege was finally lifted when replacement wing forward Robbie Tynan successfully jackaled close to the line to win a penalty for his side. 

In a frantic finish, both sides threw everything into attack and incredibly there was still time for Nenagh to secure a fourth try with a brilliant individual score from Willie Coffey in the final play of the game. Taking a switch pass back into traffic, the centre magically emerged through a forest of UCC defenders with the line at his mercy. 

His touch-down gave Nenagh a try bonus point and the successful conversion stretched the winning margin to nine points – a scarcely deserved outcome for the home side but one that keeps the Tipperary men firmly in the promotion hunt as the league takes an extended Christmas break.

 

Nenagh: 1. Mikey Doran, 2. Dylan Murphy, 3. Colm Skehan, 4. Jake O'Kelly, 5. Kevin O'Flaherty (c), 6. Rob Buckley, 7. Evan Murphy, 8. John O'Flaherty, 9. Charlie O’Doherty, 10. Ben Pope, 11. Conor O’Shaughnessy, 12. Willie Coffey, 13. Conor McMahon, 14. Patrick Scully, 15. Josh Rowland, 16. Jack Devanny, 17. Jack O'Keeffe, 18. Craig Hannon, 19. Robbie Tynan, 20. Nicky Irwin, 21. Derek Corcoran.
 Naas: 1. Mike Cogan, 2. Adam Wrona, 3. Danny McCarthy, 4. Sam O’Sullivan (c), 5. Jamie Browne, 6. Sean Edogbo, 7. Kamil Nowak, 8. Peter Hyland, 9. Jack Casey, 10. Darragh French, 11. Sean Condon, 12. Rory O’Shaughnessy, 13. Gene O’Leary Kareem, 14. Neville O’Leary, 15. Harry Murphy, 16. Stephen O’Shaughnessy, 17. Sean Dunne, 18.  Darragh O’Connell, 19. Cillian Toland, 20. Andrew O'Mahony, 21. Evan Clarke.