Thurles 36 Sunday’s Well 34

In a thrilling, hectic and topsy-turvy encounter in North Tipperary; Sunday’s Well came agonisingly close to snatching a magnificent come from behind victory only to have it snatched away with the last kick of the game. There was some consolation as they team secured two bonus points from the game; having trailed by a margin of 18 points at the break; though admittedly the stiff downfield wind did play its part in the game.

The ’Well actually started the game quite assuredly. Some early phases and strong running led to a penalty that saw Ciaran Maguire kick his side into the lead. Emeka Asiegbu; who was a live-wire throughout then made a magnificent break from the defensive Twenty-Two up to the opposing Twenty-Two, but unfortunately he was so quick the support was a tad late and a penalty was conceded.

This set the frame-work for the first-half; as penalties from anywhere for the hosts were expertly kicked into the Twenty-Two with the aid of a strong wind. Thurles were also extremely powerful and efficient in the red-zones and secured the bonus-point by half-time. All tries starting from attacking line-outs; three coming from penalties and one arising out a superb 50-22.

The ‘Well were making some decent carries and off-loads with Jacob Lane and Finn MacFhlannchadha particularly lively while Evan O’Connell had some strong surges as well. However; they struggled to break into the Twenty-Two enough; and once when they did; following great carries by Jacob Lane and Mariano Cosimi; the ball was spread from right to left with Cormac Kelliher breaking through.

The ’Well; even with the aid of the strong wind faced a major task as they trailed 26-8 at the break. However; full of confidence and belief; and with the half-back pairing of Maguire and Fabien Loughrey marshalling the flow – the side mounted a great comeback with some excellent flowing attacking rugby.

Almost from the kick-off, the ‘Well were awarded a penalty having received the ball. The quick thinking Loughrey tapped and raced all the way up towards the Thurles five-metre line – with only a hasty high-tackle stopping him. The ‘Well played with the advantage and after some strong carries; it was Andrew O’Callaghan who surged over the line.

Maguire executed some excellent 50-22s; although one such kick made the Thurles sideline quite irate. However; another one they could not give out about and from the strong line-out; they got a penalty. After a series of carries the ever industrious Mike McCarthy – who had a mammoth game at set-piece and in the loose powered over. Maguire added conversion to both tries to make it 26-22.

Thurles in fairness; weren’t only looking to take rearguard action and played some strong running rugby of their own – as the game went fairly helter skelter with several times the ball worked its way from deep in one Twenty-Two to the other. Their hard work did give them some breathing space with another try to stretch the lead to 11 points.

There was a series where the ‘Well were bombarding the Thurles Twenty-Two, before a counter-attack saw the Tipp’ side run from end-to -end and a try looked certain but persistent last ditch pressure forced a forward pass. From the scrum, Alex Lane and Eric Kingston combined to break from their own line and earn an attacking line-out. This led to several phases before Lane cut in a great line to touch down.

Then Maguire having converted, produced a series of great kicks to both wings; firstly to Alex Lane and then across to Emeka Asiegbu who forced pressure on the Thurles recovering defenders to win a five-metre scrum. The ‘Well locked out the scrum and eventually the supreme Cormac Kelliher fored his way over for the go-ahead score with only a couple of minutes remaining. Maguire narrowly missed the tricky conversion to leave it be a one-point lead.

Thurles reclaimed the kick-off and the ‘Well couldn’t relieve the pressure. They had the hosts on the Twenty-Two but eventually a penalty was unfortunately conceded in front of the posts. It was still a tricky effort into the wind but Jack Flanagan was the hero for Thurles with the game-winning kick – having also kicked four out of five conversions and nabbing a try also.

Fair play to Thurles; who are improving lately and the ‘Well definitely showed that their attacking game continues to progress with some great interplay and moves. They will aim to bounce back under the lights against a strong Clonakility next Saturday night back at home.

Scorers: Thurles: Jack Flanagan try, 4 cons, pen; Seamus Holohan, Colin Nolan, John Shaw, Sonny Dwyer tries;

Sunday’s Well: Cormac Kelliher (2), Andrew O’Callaghan, Mike McCarthy, Alex Lane tries; Ciaran Maguire 3 cons, pen.

Thurles: Jack Flanagan; Matthew Kelly,  James O’Mara, Sonny Dwyer, Luke Fogarty; James Maher, Seamus Holohan; John Shaw, Shane Nugent, Stephen Kirwan; Colin Nolan, Daniel Lanigan-Ryan; Sam Quinlan, Mark Cummins, Ciaran Ryan. Replacements: Brandon Meaney, James Butler, Donncha Ryan, Brian O’Connell, Kieran O’Hagan, James Devaney, Riccardo Prandi.

Sunday’s Well: David O’Dwyer; Alex Lane, Mariano Cosimi, Andrew O’Callaghan, Emeka Asiegbu; Ciaran Maguire, Fabien Loughrey; Evan O’Connell, Dylan Cooper, Mike McCarthy; John Costello, Jacob Lane; Kees Pereka, Finn MacFhlannchadha, Cormac Kelliher. Replacements: Eoin Carmody, David Hourigan., Robert Loftus, Aaron Beale, Robert Egar, Eric Kingston, Eoin Aherne.

Sunday’s Well 36 Newcastle West 7

It was another scintillating attacking showpiece from the ‘Well on the main pitch at Virgin Media Park, as they ran in a five-try salvo to secure successive bonus point victories in the Junior League. The bonus point was achieved by half-time with a  31-0 lead after a half of some of the most exhilarating power running rugby seen for a few years.

It was a great team performance; with some powerful foundations laying the platform for some of the enterprising play being undertaken. The likes of Mike McCarthy, John Costello and Kees Pereka hit hard around the fringes, both in the attack and the defence and laid a lot of the foundations to create space for their team-mates out wide.

There was great cohesion in the attacks, with the running lines of Finn MacFhlannchadha and Cormac Kelliher setting up chances for others out wide. Andrew ‘Bully’ O’Callaghan probably started the show with a  magnificent break up the middle in the opening minutes to turn defence into attack and start building the pressure on the Newcastle West defence. ‘Bully’ partnered well with Harry McHenry outside him; while the back three were a consistent potent threat throughout.

The initial Bully break created the penalty situation that saw Ciaran Maguire slot the kick over for the opening score. Maguire, who controlled the flow of the game at out-half with Fabien Loughrey inside him then kicked another penalty into the 22. A superb drive saw the maul bought down just short of the line. A series of strong carries by Mike McCarthy, Captain Finn and Fabs continued to exert pressure before Minty made his way over the line. His second try in as many week; though it should be three as he effectively should be credited with last weekend’s penalty-try.

The  ‘Well continued to play with a  dynamic vim and vigour. The line-out; directed by the livewire Dylan Cooper proved a constant threat and it set the platform for another attack. With some strong follow up carries; pulling Newcastle defenders in tight; allowing the ball to be spread out with the experience head of Mariano Cosimi touching down.

Another similar move; saw Robert Loftus create a great front-foot drive that allowed Fabien Loughrey snipe around the edge for the third try. Alex Lane finished off the try-fest of a first-half following a sublime break by Cormac Kelliher. Lane ran a magnificent support line; taking out the three retreating defenders when CK made the pass.

The second-half was much more even; with Newcastle West eager to make a fightback. There were moments for each team; but the ‘Well defended tenaciously with some massive hits around the fringes, while Mariano Cosimi and Emeka Asiegbu managed the defence out-wide when space was created; halting several scoring chances.

After sustaining pressure, the ‘Well broke off a scrum on their own five-metre line; with replacement Ryan O’Donoghue Kelliher making a great break out of the Twenty-Two.  Emeka Asiegbu was on hand to bring play to half-way before making a great in-field kick leading to an attacking scrum. A powerful solid drive allowed Fabien to break on the blind-side and set up Lane for his third try in two weeks. 

NCW eventually made a breakthrough with Sean Murphy touching down.

Scorers: Sunday’s Well: Alex Lane (2), Andrew Mintern, Fabien Loughrey, Mariano Cosimi tries; Ciarán Maguire 4 cons, pen.

Newcastle West: Sean Murphy try. James Guina con.

Sunday’s Well: Mariano Cosimi; Alex Lane, Harry McHenry, Andrew O’Callaghan, Emeka Asiegbu; Ciaran Maguire, Fabien Loughrey; Evan O’Connell, Dylan Cooper, Michael McCarthy; Andrew Mintern, John Costello; Kees Pereka, Finn MacFhlannchadha, Cormac Kelliher. Replacements: Sean McDonald, Robert Loftus., David Hourigan, Jacob Lane, Rob Maher, Ryan O’Donoghue-Kelleher, Alex Guerin.

Newcastle West: James Guina, Daniel Normoyle, Liam Treacy, Sean Murphy, Sean Darcy; Michael Bourke, Jack Grimes; Shane Breen, Kieran Copse, John Walsh; Gerald Griffin, Alan O’Riordan; Padraig Roche, Jason Woulfe, Cian Mulcahy. Replacements: Cormac Browne, Robert O’Donovan, TJ Relihan, Paudie Kelly, Jack Corkery, Giorgi Kilasonia, Andrew Mortell.

Mallow 21 Sunday’s Well 29

On a clear crisp afternoon in Mallow; the ‘Well produced an excellent performance in a thrilling hard-fought battle to claim their first maximum points of the season. It was a great hard-hitting and committed performance from all 22 players against last-year’s runners up; for whom some familiar faces in Owen and Jimmy Glynn played significant roles.

The attacking tempo from both sides was high from the start – but equally were the defensive hits; leading to an intriguing encounter for all witnessing the game. Kees Pereka and Mike McCarthy were among those leading the defence while John Costello and Finn MacFhlannchadha made plenty of strong carries in attack. Evan O’Connell made some sublime surges and off-loads while his front-row colleague Dylan Cooper had an immense game; getting on plenty of ball and gaining a lot of momentum for his side.

Out wide; Emeka Asiegbu and Harry McHenry made some incisive runs while Mariano Cosimi was covering excellently in the back-field and steady as a rock under the high ball. Half-backs Fabian Loughrey and Ciaran Maguire controlling the tempo while Andrew O’Callaghan superbly marshalled the back-line.

The ‘Well almost struck first, with good carries by McHenry and Costello setting up a chance, but Alex Lane was unable to finish a difficult opportunity. Mallow also started like a bat out of hell with immense ferocity. They had an immense opening scrum but the ‘Well front-row recovered and managed to turn things around as the game developed. With Mallow pinning the ‘Well back; an attempted clearance from the five-metre line was blocked down by Jimmy Glynn who chased through and touched down, with Hunter Cowan converting.

Ciaran Maguire responded shortly with a penalty following powerful surges by Evan O’Connell and Loughrey. The’ Well built on the momentum – led by captain MacFhlannchadha and the experienced Cormac Kelliher. The front-row were prominent, in the loose; with O’Connell and Cooper almost setting up Mike McCarthy for a try – but the tight-head was adjudged to be held up.

The ‘Well though maintained the pressure and eventually a sublime pass by Kelliher allowed Cosimi finish off a chance in the left-corner to edge the ‘Well into an 8-7 lead. Kelliher temporarily went off with a knock; but the ferocity was maintained with Jacob Lane coming on.

Evan O’Connell again was to the fore with a line-breaking burst to set up an attacking position in the Twenty-Two and the lively Andrew Mintern finished off the move to surge over the line. Maguire kicked the extras to make it a 15-7 lead.

The ‘Well’s defence was to the fore in the closing stages; with the two Lanes leading the charge. Jacob Lane kept up the intensity; forcing unsure passes with his team-mates following; leading to the Alex Lane pouncing on a long pass to intercept and race half the length of the field. Maguire’s simple conversion made it a 22-7 score-line for the visitors at half-time.

The bonus-point was secured within the first minute of the second-half. A Fabian Loughrey break saw Andrew Mintern followed up and the second-row was about to race in for his second try, but only a high tackle prevented him – leading the referee to award a penalty-try. With one point secured; the ‘Well knew even with a sizable lead – they couldn’t take a strong focused Mallow team for granted.

The hosts showed great tenacity to respond and while the ‘Well defended ferociously, Mallow got in for a pair of tries by Chris O’Regan and Conor Ellis. Both supremely converted by Cowan. There was still a quarter of an hour left; but the ‘Well finally earned some possession and territory since the penalty-try, including a superb driving maul that bought them into the Twenty-Two from half-way.

They couldn’t yield a score but used up plenty of time and Mallow did put together one last effort with time-up. The ‘Well effectively had the win secured in the last play but with two bonus-points on the line; both sides fought with everything to the end and the ‘Well just held up; as two efforts for Mallow came agonisingly close to getting their double bonus-point try.

Scorers: Mallow: Jimmy Glynn, Chris O’Regan, Conor Ellis tries; Hunter Cowan 3 conversions.

Sunday’s Well: Andrew Mintern, Mariano Cosimi, Alex Lane, penalty-try tries; Ciaran Maguire  2 cons, pen. 

Mallow: Barry Taylor; Sam Glynn, Dylan Walsh, Kenneth Mills, Ryan Clifford; Hunter Cowan, Jimmy Glynn; Steven Finn, Stephen Hayes, Chris O’Regan; Dylan Lucey, Rory Murphy; Owen Glynn (c), Micheál O’Callaghan, Brian Henry. Replacements: Colm Flaherty, Aaron Holland, Darragh Clifford, Thomas Mohally, Conor Ellis, Jaeden Searra, David Walsh.

Sunday’s Well: Mariano Cosimi; Alex Lane, Harry McHenry, Andrew O’Callaghan, Emeka Asiegbu; Ciaran Maguire, Fabien Loughrey; Evan O’Connell, Dylan Cooper, Michael McCarthy; Andrew Mintern, John Costello; Kees Pereka, Finn MacFhlannchadha, Cormac Kelliher. Replacements: Sean McDonald, Robert Loftus., David Hourigan, Jacob Lane, Eric Kingston, Ryan O’Donoghue-Kelleher, Alex Guerin.