Weekend Match Reports January 11th & 12th

  • January 16, 2020

U18.5

After round 2 of the Pan Munster Cup was conceded Killorglin faced Waterford City on Saturday 11th January in Round 3. After a deluge over night Killorglin were lucky to be able to move the game to the Cromane Community Field. Killorglin were under pressure from the kick off when they failed to secure the kick and Waterford had possession inside the 22. Killorglin however withheld and a clearing penalty gave them a lineout on their own 10 metre. A good ball off the top gave the backs good attacking ball and some great hands got them into the Waterford 22. From the resulting ruck the ball came to Cormac Doyle who carried well through a number of tackles to touch down to the right of the posts. Evans kicked the conversion to make the lead 7 – 0 after 5 minutes. The next 15 mins were hard fought between both teams with neither team giving an inch. on 20 mins Jamie O’Leary got a fortunate bounce of the ball, broke one tackle and sprinted into space. After rounding the last man and a conversion from Jack Evans the score was 14-0. Waterford city finally got on the score sheet 5 mins later when they scored in the corner. missed conversion left the score at 14-5. the home side clawed something back however with a penalty by Evans from the 22. Waterford City came back at them however and got a converted try before half time leaving it at 17-12 at the break.
The scoring was slower in the second half as less tackles were missed and the battle got tougher. Killorglin had to wait until 60 mins to get a score and it came in the form of 3 points from Jack Evans. 20-12 with 10 to go. Waterford city gave it everything and might have been in if it wasn’t for great work from Shogie O’Sullivan. After missing the first tackle he turned to chase back the strong running attacker and prevented what looked like a certain try. Killorglin got over the try line in the last play when Cormac Doyle scored from close range to seal a good team try. Final score 27-12. The last round of this phase of Pan Munster sees Killorglin travel to St Senans of Shannon on Saturday 1st February.

Seniors

Munster Junior League Div 3
Corca Dhuibhne 19 Killorglin 25
Killorglin traveled to Chorca Dhuibhne for vital  league game on Sunday January 12th. The pitch was very heavy after the recent rain fall and Killorglin played against the wind but with the hill in first half. Following early scrum dominance Killorglin were awarded a penalty almost 40 metres out that went over the bar after hitting a post from the boot of Luke O’Shea. Any complacency by visitors was wiped away when Corca Dhuibhne scored a try far too easily on the blind side. Killorglin fought back into the game and scored a try through Kevin Courtney who did very well to stretch over the line and touchdown right near the touchline. Killorglin dominated much of the first half with great play in lineout and hard carrying by forwards. The rewards were a try by Mike O’Shea on right touchline and a superb team try over 60 metres of carries, touched down by Tommy Moriarty and converted by Luke O’Shea for a half time score of 20 -5 for Killorglin.
The second half started well for Killorglin but missed opportunities proved very costly as Chorca Dhuibhne surged back with 14 points through 2 converted tries to leave the gap at just one point with quarter of an hour to play. Chorca Dhuibhne were awarded a penalty near 10 metre line, but the kick went narrowly wide. Killorglin with fresh legs from bench kept playing as well as possible. A strong  break from Josh Morell looked like leading to a try. While the attack was initially stopped, a cross kick by Luke O’Shea was picked up by Seamus Doyle for the bonus point fourth try. With a lead of 6 points both teams threw everything into the final 6 minutes. Killorglin tackling moved up a gear and pick and jam play by the Killorglin forwards seemed to have closed out the match. Somehow Chorca Dhuibhne turned over the ball and attacked again in last play. Strong tackling kept them at bay until a knock on saw the final whistle blown and a bonus point victory secured. While tackling wasn’t best of season today allowance must be made for skillful players in Chorca Dhuibhne team and the dreadful condition of pitch in second half as weather deteriorated and ground cut up. A welcome weekend off beckons for a tired team who put their bodies on the line today.