Bandon 36 Sunday’s Well 20.
It wasn’t just a game of two halves down in Bandon; as Sunday’s Well dominated for the opening 50 minutes of the entire 80. But with legs tiring and Bandon’s back-line clicking into gear late on; it was the home team who managed to pull ahead and end up taking all the points from the game.
For those 50 minutes it was a great effort at a tough venue against a strong Bandon outfit as they opened up a 20-7 lead. The ‘Well set up their stall from the set piece. The scrum was monstering the hosts; with Evan O’Connell and Mike McCarthy leading the charge. The line-out was also a vital weapon, with Cormac Kelliher dominating in the air and forming several great driving mauls. Finn MacFhlannchadha and Kees Pereka were carrying strongly.
Robert Egar made a strong impression as he started at scrum-half; controlling the tempo of the game. Harry Mchenry made some vital interventions in defence and attack, winning some notable turnovers while Mariano Cosimi and Ryan O’Donoghue Kelleher made several notable surges.
The ‘Well’s set-piece dominance created the opening score. A scrum leading to a penalty – and from the line-out inside the Twenty-Two a strong surge had Bandon hustling on their own line. After a few phases it was John Costello who powered over. Ciaran Maguire converted and soon added a penalty kick – that was awarded off another scrum.
The ‘Well continued to press and a beautiful flowing attacking move created space out wide for Mariano Cosimi in the right hand corner to extend the lead to 15 points.
Bandon had their first proper attacking foray in the first half. Their persistent pressure and a series of penalties led to a Cormac Kelliher yellow card and less than a minute later; an attacking move saw Robert Egar knock the ball on. It could be argued it was made in the tackle; but the referee adjudged it to be deliberate; and as last defender he yellow-carded him and awarded a penalty-try.
Down to 13 and with a couple of minutes played; Bandon may have fancied another score; but it was the ‘Well who almost added to their tally. Evan O’Connell intercepting as the hosts looked to play out of their Twenty-Two and he foraged towards the try-line. He was stopped just short but unfortunately the ‘Well couldn’t take advantage of the promising position.
Still down to 13 men; the ‘Well won a series of early penalties to pin Bandon back. Kees PEreka forced his way over; but unfortunately a flurry of bodies blocked the referees view until it was too late. It wasn’t to matter as the ‘Well had a penalty advantage and eventually Andrew O’Callaghan touched down just a couple of metres wider.
Back to a full complement and flying-high – there was to be a sudden shift in momentum. Bandon started to get flow to their attacks and making some incisive breaks. Their heads went up when Tom Ferguson touched down with Hugh O’Mahony’s conversion making it a one-score game.
They continued to rally, soon taking the lead and then pulling away; as the ‘Well’s extra effort in those ten minutes down to 13 men began to tell.
Scorers: Bandon: Hugh O’Mahony try, 3 cons, pen; Penalty try, Tom Ferguson, Tadgh Galvin, Zack Caniffe tries;
Sunday’s Well: John Costello; Mariano Cosimi, Andrew O’Callaghan tries; Ciaran Maguire penalty, con.
Bandon: Hugh O’Mahony; Adam Hutchison, Gearoid O’Leary, Harry Hall, Colm McCarthy; Dylan Barr, Zachary Allen; Padraig Galvin, Scott Kingston, James Collins-O’Brien; Tadgh Galvin, Brendan Twohig; Joshua Brady, Ralph O’Mahony, Tom Ferguson. Replacements: Conor Egan, Jacob Brennan, Robert McCarthy, Daniel Lane, Mark Bateman, Paul Kelly, Zack Canniffe.
Sunday’s Well: MarianoCosimi; Ryan O’Donoghue-Kelleher, Harry McHenry, Andrew O’Callaghan, Alex Lane; Ciaran Maguire, Rob Egar; Evan O’Connell, Dylan Cooper, Michael McCarthy; John Costello, Robert Loftus; Finn MacFhlannchadha, Kees Pereka, Cormac Kelliher. Replacements: Dave Hourigan, Andrew Mintern, Jacob Lane, Mikey O’Connell, Eric Kingston, Emeka Asiegbu, Alex Guerin.
