Stong first-half performance sees Athboy over the line in Metro finale

Athboy were crowned champions of the Metro League Div 11 on Saturday afternoon.

Tom Gannon reports

Athboy 12

RSCI 10

The gusty winds of Storm Kathleen was always going to play havoc at Athboy Rugby Club for the home side's clash with RCSI in this Metro League final. The conditions certainly played its part and turned this contest into a game of two halves. In the end, Athboy's first-half tally of 12 points was just enough to see them crowned Div 11 champions.

RSCI did get two tries in the closing twenty minutes to make this a tight contest, however for the opening 60 minutes, Athboy were by far the superior outfit and deserving winners on the day. It had been over a decade since the club last tasted success but that wait came to an end on Saturday afternoon.

With the strong wind at their backs, Athboy started quickly with a forward drive straight from the the kickoff and after several phases, Cathal Dempsey got over the line for the opening try. The conversion was unsuccessful which meant Athboy took an early five-point lead.

RCSI tried to respond and the students retained possession for the next 10 minutes. The Athboy defence held strong and RCSI struggled to break the line. There were numerous infringements by both teams that were being picked up by referee Eoin Kiernan which made for a stop-start affair in the first-half. After 20 minutes Athboy were reduced to 14 men when Jake Dempsey was shown a yellow.

Another drive forward by keeping the ball in hands worked out for Athboy again as Colm Kirby finished off a well-worked move. This time there was no mistake by Colm's brother Edward Kirby from the conversion and Athboy went up in the contest by 12 points.

RCSI came very close to responding but a fantastic interception by Alan Fox kept Athboy out of trouble. Edward Kirby, who only started playing rugby this time last year was putting in a fantastic out-half display, kicking deep and finding touch on numerous occasions despite the tough conditions.

Not long after Dempsey returned to action, Athboy were reduced to 14 men again. This time Bryan Quirke tackled an RCSI player before he had gotten to his feet and Quirke was sent to the sin bin for his offence.

At half-time Athboy led 12-0. They did have a strong wind advantage in the opening 40 minutes, however it was a very strong performance considering they spent the whole second quarter a man down as a result of the two successive yellow cards.

A third yellow card in the contest came just five minutes into the second half. This time it was RCSI's Conor Byrne who was shown the line for a high tackle.

Despite playing against the breeze, Athboy were still on top in the contest particularly at the breakdown, and with 25 minutes left on the clock they still held a 12-point advantage over their opponents.

After various phases of sustained pressure, RCSI eventually got over for a try courtesy of Luke Doyle. The conversion attempt was unsuccessful which meant that Athboy headed into the final 15 minutes with a 12-5 lead.

With only seven minutes left, RCSI crossed the Athboy tryline again. Crucially the conversion attempt was missed which meant that Athboy still held on to a crucial two-point lead.

RCSI went in search of the winning score late on but Athboy held their composure well, turning over possession by winning a penalty in the dying minutes and from there out retaining possession.

Eventually, time elapsed and Edward Kirby got his opportunity to kick for touch one more time in the contest to seal the victory and crown Athboy champions.

Athboy - 15 Evan Cole, 14 Jake Dempsey, 13 Ger Sullivan, 12 Sean Treacy, 11 Lee Coldrick, 10 Edward Kirby, 9 Alan Fox; 1 Keith Horan, 2 Daniel Pike, 3 Cathal Dempsey, 4 Colm Kirby, 5 Bryan Quirke, 6 Conor McGourty, 7 Bernard McLoughlin, 8 Niall Finnegan. Subs - Micheal Fitzsimons, Shane Butterly, James Moloney, Oran Ledwith, Enda Reilly, Chris Carroll, Micheal Fagan, Robert McGrath, Frank Sheridan.

RSCI - 15 Euan Woodlock, 14 John Klar, 13 Adrian Hayes, 12 Conor Byrne, 11 John Geraghty McCormack, 10 Niall McNulty, 9 Evan Maier; 1 Conor O'Brien, 2 Joseph Corcoran, 3 Brendan Ernst, 4 Mark Stanley, 5 Luke McAuley, 6 Darragh Braniff, 7 John Paul Hess, 8 Luke Doyle. Subs - Rory Sheil, Aditya Nair, Adarsh Aratikatla, Gerrard Keane, Jhorrit Kahlon, Lorcan Nimmo, Evan Wyatt, Eoin Ryan, Thomas Ryan.

Referee: Eoin Kiernan