AIL RUGBY
Daire Walsh
ST MARY’S COLLEGE………………………….. 16
CORK CONSTITUTION…………………………. 20
TRIES from Rob Jermyn, Liam O’Connell and Niall Kenneally were crucial at Templeville Road on Saturday, when Con survived a late St Mary’s onslaught to claim a narrow win in Division 1A of the Ulster Bank League.
In their first game of the top-flight campaign, last season’s runners-up Con established a foothold in the Mary’s 22 during the early exchanges, with winger Jermyn eventually crossing over in the right-corner for a fifth-minute try.
Fly-half Tomas Quinlan was wide of the mark from the conversion, but with his opposite number Kearns also missing the target from penalties in the 19th and 23rd, the visitors remained five points in front.
Indeed, after Kenneally made a strong break into enemy territory, O’Connell was left with the simple task of touching down underneath the posts.
Quinlan comfortably supplied the bonuses, before Mary’s finally got off the mark with a stoppage-time Kearns penalty.
Con’s interval advantage had been reduced to nine points (12-3), but within 60 seconds of the restart, Jermyn provided the spadework for a much-deserved Kenneally five-pointer.
The Leesiders appeared to be in pole position at this point, but the sin-binning of Ger Sweeney left them with a numerical disadvantage.
Kearns added a second place-kick in his absence, and just as Sweeney was about to re-enter the play, number eight Conor Kendergan also received a yellow-card from referee Stuart Gaffikin.
Brian Hickey’s charges held firm for much of this period, before a seven-point Kearns salvo on 70 minutes helped Mary’s to storm into contention.
Another three-pointer by Kearns reduced the gap to a minimum, but Con ultimately secured the spoils after Quinlan split the posts five minutes into added time.
Scorers for St Mary’s College: Sean Kearns try, 3 pens, con.
Scorers for Cork Constitution: Rob Jermyn, Liam O’Connell, Niall Kenneally try each, Tomas Quinlan pen, con.
ST MARY’S COLLEGE: J McDonnell; T Kennedy, R O’Loughlin, I Dineen, M Fogarty; S Kearns, P O’Driscoll; T O’Reilly, H Kean, B McGovern; C Ruddock, C O’Flaherty; N McCarthy, D Aspil, K Sheahan.
Replacements: Daragh Keller for Sheahan (14), Ian Cullinane for McDonnell (35), Richard Halpin for O’Flaherty (67).
CORK CONSTITUTION: S Daly; L O’Connell, N Hodson, N Kenneally, R Jermyn; T Quinlan, J Poland; G Duffy, M Abbott, G Sweeney; B Hayes, D O’Shea; E Mintern, S Dwyer, C Kendergan.
Replacements: Jason Higgins for Quinlan (51), Liam O’Connor for Dwyer (52-59), Greg Roche for Abbott, Quinlan for Poland (both 74), JJ O’Neill for Jermyn (77).
Referee: Stuart Gaffikin (IRFU).