Tallaght R.F.C. 31

Tries: Owen Tyrrell 2, David Clarke 2, Jack Russell
Con: Morgan Farrell 3

Seapoint R.F.C. 21

Metro League Division 7
Tymon Park
1/4/2017

On April’s fool’s day, Tallaght took on Seapoint in their final regular league game of the season. The arrival of top try-scorer Simon Collie was delayed however by a crucial and necessary appointment with the hairdressers. Tallaght started well though when centre Owen Tyrrell went on a barrelling run and just keeping going to battle his way over for a try. The conversion was missed but Tallaght led 5-0. Their lead was short lived though as Seapoint took advantage of some poor defending on the flanks to score an excellent try which they converted to lead 7-5.

It wasn’t long before Tallaght were back in front though. Back rows Adam Nolan and Jack Russell combined superbly to put Dave Clarke away to score under the posts. Morgan Farrell converted and then he turned provider with a superbly judged inside pass to put Clarke away for his second try under the posts. Farrell converted and Tallaght had a commanding lead at 19-7. They suffered a blow though when Ciaran Rudd was sin-binned after the referee judged he had contested a ball in the air dangerously. Seapoint applied pressure but Tallaght got out of trouble with a fantastic maul which went all the way from their own line to the half-way line and it remained 19-5 at halftime.

Simon Collie took the field for the second half and his splendid new haircut gave everyone a lift. He quickly reminded everyone of his ability with an excellent run beating several defenders with his footwork before offloading to the supporting Owen Tyrrell who went over for his second try of the match. Farrell converted to make it 26-7 to Tallaght. However, Seapoint hit back again with another converted try to make it 26-14. Tallaght responded by mauling over for a try with Jack Russell getting the touchdown to make it 31-14. Seapoint hit back again to make it 31-21. At this point the heavens opened and it had a massive effect on the rest of the match as both teams struggled to adapt to the wet conditions. Sean Judd kicked a ball on the ground near a ruck but unfortunately he caught Frank Doyle and knocked him unconscious. He had to be taken to hospital by the fire brigade and everyone wishes Frank a speedy recovery.

Simon Collie had a chance to make the game safe when he took off on another massy run but in the process of putting the ball down, he dropped it and they try was disallowed. In mitigation, the rain had played havoc with his lovely new haircut and he was clearly distressed about this. In the conditions the ball was like a bar of soap and there was no more scoring, the game finishing 31-21 to Tallaght. This means Tallght finish level on points with DLSP, but the mountain folk top the table due to a higher number of wins and will have home advantage for the league final.

Tallaght head coach Tom Leigh was pleased with his side’s display. “I’m delighted with the structure in the first half and the way we set out game plan. Our scrums and lineout were excellent, especially our driving maul. Overall it was a good test and now we are totally focused on the league final and need to work on improving all aspects of our game. It has been an excellent season for Tallaght Rugby Club so I hope the whole community can get behind us for the final. This final is for all the club members both past and present. Here’s hoping our main man, the late Philly Preston, is looking down at Tallaght delighted with our season”.

Man of the match: Owen Tyrrell

Tallaght RFC

15. Ciaran Rudd
14. Gary Doyle
13. David Clarke
12. Owen Tyrrell
11. Rob Hudson
10. Morgan Farrell
9. Andew Rudd

8. Adam Nolan
7. Jack Russell
6. Alan Sower
5. Paul Cunningham (Captain)
4. Joe Ivers
3. Tony McManus
2. Ken McGovern
1. Andrew Caswell

Replacements:

16. Kevin Quinn
17. Gavin McKeon
18. Stephen Kelly
19. Sean Judd
20. Frank Doyle
21. Alan Bernes
22. Simon Collie

Report:Jim O’Connor ©
Photos: Anne Kavanagh