Leinster ‘A’ scrum half Adam Griggs, who was sprung from the bench, was Lansdowne’s hero as his 79th minute try earned a 27-20 bonus point win at the expense of Cork Constitution.
The disappointment of the defeat lifted slightly for Cork Con when they learned that UCD and Ballynahinch had both lost, meaning that the Leesiders’ losing bonus point was enough to move them back into the top four.
The afternoon had begun brightly for Cork Con as Munster prospect Darren Sweetnam touched down for the second week running. Lansdowne’s patience was tested until Conor McKeon’s neat offload played in hooker Tyrone Moran for an unconverted try in the right corner.
An opportunist try by Cork Con out-half Tomas Quinlan restored his side’s five-point advantage, but a late surge from Lansdowne made it 12-10 at the break as Tom Daly’s purposeful break was finished off by his centre partner Tom Farrell and McKeon converted.
McKeon and Quinlan swapped penalties early on the resumption before Lansdowne, playing with increased confidence, swept through for their third try – a memorable run on the right wing saw Farrell break free to complete his brace in the 53rd minute.
McKeon missed the conversion, though, and with 13 minutes remaining a Lansdowne handling errorallowed the speedy Sweetnam to latch on to the loose ball and race in under the posts. Quinlan’s levelling conversion set up a grandstand finish.
However, Lansdowne produced the goods when it mattered most as Griggs ghosted through a minute from the end to score the game’s decisive try and give the headquarters club their 13th win in 16 league outings.