Highfield pipped at the post
AIL DIVISION 2B
Daire Walsh
BECTIVE RANGERS……………………………………….. 28
HIGHFIELD………………………………………………….. 27
SECOND-ROW David Kelly helped himself to a brace of tries at Donnybrook on Saturday afternoon, but Highfield ultimately came up just short against Bective Rangers in the opening game of their Ulster Bank League Division 2B campaign.
Bective should prove to be a tough nut to crack on their impressive 4G surface throughout the current season, but even though home skipper Rob O’Beirn was held up just shy of the opposition line inside the opening minute of the contest, the Woodleigh Park outfit eventually broke the deadlock courtesy of a clinical strike from the kicking tee by Dylan Horgan 13 minutes in.
Horgan was also on hand to supply the bonuses to Kelly’s well-worked try prior to the half-hour mark. This provided Highfield with an unexpected 10-point platform, before an outstanding individual touchdown by winger Finbar Ryan opened the Bective account on 32 minutes.
This score was supplemented by a simple conversion from O’Beirn, but when the Highfield pack applied persistent pressure on the Bective defence in the closing stages of the half, a penalty try was awarded.
As a result, Highfield had restored their 10-point cushion (17-7) in time for the interval. The hosts responded emphatically, with Adam Philpot’s breakaway converted try reducing the gap to three points.
However, Horgan’s second successful penalty did offer Highfield some much-needed breathing space.
Yet, the 59th minute sin-binning of Ben Murphy was a set-back, and in his absence, Bective gather serious momentum. In spite of the best efforts from a hard-working Highfield rearguard, O’Beirn crossed over in the left-corner at the end of a fine individual run, and 12 minutes from the end of normal time, excellent approach play by the influential centre led to a seven-point salvo for fly-half Darragh Mullins.
This proved to be a decisive scoring sequence from Bective, and although a late surge in the Bective ’22’ produced a second try from the powerful Kelly, Highfield had to settle for a losing bonus point.
Scorers for Bective Rangers: Rob O’Beirn try, 3 cons, Darragh Mullins try, con, Adam Philpot, Finbar Ryan try each.
Scorers for Highfield: David Kelly 2 tries, Dylan Horgan 2 pens, 3 cons, penalty try.
BECTIVE RANGERS: Richard Dunne; Finbar Ryan, Adam Philpot, Rob O’Beirn, Ian O’Connor; Darragh Mullins, Joris Lezat; Cathal Bannon, John Deegan, Will O’Donovan; Rory Kennealy, Oisin Lennon; Aidan Mulligan, Eoin Sweeney, Conor Power.
Replacements: Eamon Murphy for Kennealy (25-33), Murphy for Deegan (33), Deegan for Murphy (49-63), Mark Hudson for Kennealy (52), Ken Copeland for O’Connor (63), Deegan for O’Donovan (77).
HIGHFIELD: Peter O’Brien; Paul Stack, Brian O’Hea, Sean Quaid, James Daly; Dylan Horgan, Kevin Foyle; John O’Callaghan, David O’Hea, David O’Callaghan; David Kelly, Fintan O’Sullivan; David O’Connell, Dylan Lane, Miah Cronin.
Replacements: Ben Murphy for Daly (28), Daly for Stack (40+1), Marc Murphy for Lane (46), Timmy Ryan for D O’Callaghan, Chris Bannon for Foyle (both 51), D O’Callaghan for J O’Callaghan (58), Conor Forde for D O’Callaghan, Lane for Cronin (both 70).
Referee: Cillian Hogan (IRFU).