LEINSTER SENIOR CUP FIRST ROUND
NEWBRIDGE COLLEGE…………………………. 10
PRESENTATION BRAY……………………………. 12
By Daire Walsh
A Dermot Masterson penalty seven minutes into second-half stoppage time cruelly denied Newbridge College a place in the second round of the 2012 Leinster Senior Cup after an absorbing contest played in bright conditions at Templeville Road last Wednesday afternoon.
Newbridge looked like they had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat when the excellent Phil O’Neill cross the line for a try 73 minutes into the action, but Presentation Bray showed great resilience to emerged victorious with the final kick of the game.
Having come through two thrilling games with Pres Bray on their way to the Vinnie Murray Cup Final last year, this was always going to be a tight and tense encounter and so it proved in the south Dublin venue, as the soft ground made life difficult for both sets of players. That being said, Newbridge did make a bright start to the proceedings, as they put significant pressure on the Pres Bray rearguard during the opening moments.
The North Wicklow side were very strong in defence, though, and with committed performers like Masterson and out-half Philip Haughton at their disposal, it was going to be tough for Newbridge to break them down. However, the relentless pressure from the two-time Senior Cup Champions eventually paid off 16 minutes in, as a sweeping move across the Bray line eventually found its way to scrum-half Robbie Mullen, who put prop Jonathan Phelan through for a try in the left-corner.
This was no more than Newbridge deserved, and even though Mullen fell short with the subsequent conversion, the south Kildare outfit would have been more than happy that their early dominance produced some reward. Pres Bray had spent most of the opening 20 minutes camped inside their own half, but they did get a chance to open their account when full-back Masterson was presented with a kicking opportunity 25 metres from the Newbridge posts.
Unfortunately for Bray, he did come up short with this particular kick, but Bray did start to put some pressure on Newbridge for the first time in the contest. Indeed, Newbridge had to be at their best defensively in order to keep Pres Bray at bay on a couple of occasions, as they were threatening more and more to make inroads towards their opponent’s line.
Bray did have further opportunities to open their account from penalties in first-half injury-time, but Masterson and Haughton came up just short with their respective kicks at goal. This ensured that Newbridge held onto a slender 5-0 lead heading into the second period with the outcome of the game still firmly in the balance.
Having gradually improved as the opening period progressed, Pres Bray were determined to continue their good work after the resumption, and they finally opened their scoring account on 43 minutes with a penalty from Masterson just outside the ’22’. This was really throwing down the gauntlet to Newbridge, who had just lost flanker Oisin McKnight to the sin-bin for a high tackle in the line-out.
To their credit, they did adapt well with 14 men, but Bray would eventually draw a penalty from them 52 minutes in, which was converted with ease by the increasingly influential Masterson. This gave Pres Bray the lead for the very first time, and Newbridge responded by introducing no less than four players to the action.
This did help them to increase the tempo of their play, but it was Bray who struck next, as a third penalty from Masterson gave them a four-point cushion with ten minutes of normal time remaining. There was a sense at this point that the game might be slipping away from Newbridge, and that they would probably need a try if they still had aspirations of making the second round of the competition.
Replacements Colm Grant and Hugh O’Donnell did go close to getting over the Bray line with seven minutes to go, but the ball was knocked on at the final moment.
Then, just when it seemed like Bray were going to hold out for a hard-earned victory, pacy winger O’Neill was put through in the right-corner by the outstanding Mullen for his side’s second try of the encounter.
Mullen was short once again with the conversion, but it now looked like they would have enough to get them over the finishing line.
Bray simply wouldn’t give in, however, and they managed to manufacture a penalty from all of 40-metre on 77 minutes, which Masterson stepped up confidently to kick.
There were many agonising faces in the crowd as Masterson kicked towards goal, and initial television replays were inconclusive as whether the kick had actually gone over or not, but the officials behind the goal were convinced and the Pres Bray faithful were sent into raptures.
The manner of the defeat will no doubt have been heartbreaking to the Newbridge coaching staff, but they couldn’t fault the effort on the day, with the performances of O’Neill, Mullen, Graham Burns and substitute Grant being particularly noteworthy.
NEWBRIDGE COLLEGE: Dan O’Loughlin; Ivan Briody, Charlie Ryan, Graham Burns, Phil O’Neill; Mark Sutton, Robbie Mullen; Jonathan Phelan, Conor Murphy, Bryan O’Donnell, Stuart O’Rourke, Billy Scully, Mark Kavanagh, Oisin McKnight, Richard Snell.
Replacements: Hugh O’Donnell for Kavanagh (52), Jack Coghlan-Murray for Ryan (52), Billy Delaney for Briody (52), Chris Healy for O’Loughlin (52), Colm Grant for B O’Donnell (57).
PRESENTATION BRAY: Dermot Masterson; Jack Keating, Darragh Henderson, Jason Curran, Robbie Brennan; Philip Haughton, John Treaynor; Kenneth Murphy, Cormac O’Meadhra, Conor Pearse, Gerry Peakin, James Hayes, David Doyle, Louis O’Flynn-Martin, Cormac O’Donoghue.
Replacements: Adam Stapleton for Hayes (40), Darren Cassidy for Keating (67), Adam Conway for Brennan (67).
REFEREE: Ed Kenny (Leinster Branch).