Buccaneers 27 Corinthians 15
John Mulligan
Despite a brave performance, Corinthians had to give second best to Buccaneers on Saturday afternoon in the Semi-Final of the Bank of Ireland Connacht Senior Cup. Corinthians were missing some regulars but that should not take away from the hard work put in by a young Corinthians squad who at times played some sublime rugby but were also guilty of handling errors at the wrong times.
It must be stated at this point that the score line does not reflect the game in any way, the final try for Buccaneers that decided the contest came at the very death and the experience gained by several of the Corinthians squad will stand to them as the Energia League enters a vital phase starting with a crucial home game with Sligo under lights on Friday night in Corinthian park.
Conditions were near ideal in Dubarry Park with little or no breeze for the teams to contend with and given the heavy rain in the area in recent days, the pitch held up well. A good start was important for the visitors but unfortunately, it was Buccaneers who started the better. A lineout won by Danny Qualter found Cian McCann who was held up just short. However, McCann found Ryan O’Meara in support who drove through the cover for the opening try after just two minutes with the conversion by Michael Hanley.
A response was needed by Corinthians and six minutes later they got it. A lineout collected by Ruan Janse Rensburg led to a driving maul with Adam Nash at the back. Five phases later, and with Orin Burke stopped just short, Joey Tierney fed Sean Fox who powered his way through for the try.
The game was surprisingly open with both teams having half chances to add to the scoreboard. Buccaneers were stopped short of the line while at the other end Corinthians, through Sean Fox and Harry Rogers, both had breaks that didn’t materialise in scores.
Buccaneers would strike next with a try from Earle on twenty one minutes and they repeated the trick twelve minutes later with Earle scoring his second. However, with the clock nearing half time, Corinthians gave themselves a lifeline when Harry Rogers intercepted a pass on his own 22’ and ran the length to dot down under the posts. Dylan Keane’s conversion left just five between the teams at the break.
Corinthians sensed a weakness in the Buccaneers line and went for it only for possession to break down at the worst of times. Handling errors and loose passes combined with staunch defending meant that chances were lost. With all their opportunities, Corinthians could not breakdown the Buccs rearguard and as the clock ticked into the final ten minutes neither side had crossed the whitewash.
It would be seventy one minutes before the next score would come with Hanley kicking a penalty for Buccaneers. Keane returned the favour and the game was still there for anyone as the clock ticked into the red. It was at this moment that Buccaneers drove the dagger into the Corinthians' heart when MacFarlane popped the ball to Burgess and he powered through a handful of tackles to dive over for a try. Hanley’s conversion was good and with that went Corinthians chance of making the Connacht Senior Cup Final.
It would be unfair to be overly critical of Corinthians at this juncture. The team put in an excellent performance against a side who are two divisions above them in the Energia League and if anything, can be very proud of the effort that they put in. The return of Ruan Janse Rensburg from injury was a massive positive as was the performance of the entire pack against a strong Buccaneers eight. At the back, all never stopped and while the defeat might be disappointing, the experience gained by many of the younger players will stand to them.
It is now back to the Energia League on Friday night for Corinthians and this Friday they host Sligo in what could be a crucial game for both teams. Corinthians are second to Instonians who are unbeaten in twenty-seven games while Sligo are currently fourth and in a playoff spot. When the teams met just before Christmas, Corinthians came out on top 15-10 with John Devine scoring two tries. Another performance like this would set up Michael Harding’s team for a very exciting second half to the season. Kick off on Friday night is at 8pm.
Corinthians: O Burke, M O’Reilly, S Fox, T Waters, F MacCearra, D Keane, J Tierney. P Fahy, A Nash, A Burke, G Kilkelly, R Janse Rensburg, D Fitzpatrick, P Flannery, M Boyle (captain ).
Replacements: E Oifoh, J Hughes, M Garcia Peret, G Murray, K Brennan, H Rogers, H Sheridan.
Buccaneers: C O’Shaughnessy, O Burgess, S Layden (captain ), S Mannion, M Earle, M Hanley, L MacFarlane. J Kelly, O Dolan, F Murray, F McDonnell, D Qualter; R O’Meara, C Walsh, C McCann.
Replacements: T Shine, M Staunton, G Daly, L Balsiger, C Morrissey, J Nagle C Daly.
Referee: Shane Touhy
