U16 Munster Club Cup

Nenagh Ormond 19-15 Killarney

Nenagh Ormond Under 16s played Killarney in the final group match of the Munster Club Cup on Sunday last on the 4G pitch in U.L. Although there were some showers and a particularly strong wind, the surface was ideal for running rugby and the Nenagh lads were looking forward to playing on it. Indeed in the opening quarter their passing was excellent and they went two scores ahead. The first came when centre Aaron Delahunty broke to inside the visitors 22. The ball was recycled quickly and flashed out the line to Liam Cooney. With both forwards and backs in the line, every pass was spot on, inviting the receiver to run onto the ball, and Cooney finished well. James Finn converted to put Nenagh 7 points in front.

The next score came when Nenagh gained possession in their own 22 and, seeing that Killarney were defending narrowly, they opted to run the ball. Again the passing was sharp and when Adam Cleere got the ball out wide he backed himself, using his footwork to get around the defence and showing great pace to run the length of the pitch to score. Finn again added the extras to stretch the lead to 14 points.

However, after this great start Nenagh seemed to relax and at the same time Killarney started to settle into the game. In the second quarter the visitors began to make good ground through their forwards and Nenagh spent quite a bit of time inside their own 10 metre line. After being held up once, Killarney eventually got over the line and just minutes later they broke through for a second try to bring the score back to 14-10.

Although disappointed that they had allowed Killarney to come back to within a score, the Nenagh lads knew they had more in them and they went out to start the second half with renewed determination. It took time but Nenagh stayed patient and were rewarded when a strong run from James Finn saw him suck in several defenders. The support was on hand to clean out and Josh Moloney powered through the defenders to touch down.

Now 9 points behind, Killarney really upped their game and began to throw everything at Nenagh. They scored a third try to bring the score back to 19-15 with under ten minutes to go and they just kept coming. Nenagh stayed cool, exiting the 22 effectively when under pressure and good tackling and communication meant that the defence held up with particularly notable try saving tackles by Adam Cleere, Josh Moloney and Jack O’Flaherty.

This was another determined performance from our Under 16s against a very good Killarney team. Scrum half Andrew Ferris directed the forwards well and controlled the pace of the game while backrow John Brislane’s workrate was immense. This win keeps us in the hunt and we await results from other groups next weekend before the draw for playoffs takes place.

Team: Adam Cleere, Liam Cooney, Aaron Delahunty, James Finn, Luke Graham, Adam Steed, Andrew Ferris, Christian Storey, Sean Fitzgerald, Paddy Ryan, Darragh Tucker, Josh Moloney, Tom Kennedy, John Brislane, Eoghan Tighe (c). Reps: Jack Gleeson, Arainn O’Sullivan, Evan Rainsford, Jack O’Flaherty, Sam Lloyd.