Ormond comfortably pass first second tier exam

If much of the rest of their league campaign is similar to this, Nenagh Ormond will be looking up rather than down in the table after an impressive debut victory in Division 1B of the All-Ireland League on Saturday.

RUGBY: Energia All-Ireland League Division 1B Round 1

Nenagh Ormond 27

Dublin University 3

Report: Shane Brophy at New Ormond Park

Photos: Odhran Ducie

MATCH DIGEST

Player of the Match: Kevin O’Flaherty (Nenagh Ormond).

SCORERS – Nenagh Ormond: Tries – O’Shaughnessy, Blackmore, D Murphy, Rowland. Convs - McMahon (2) Pen: McMahon (1)

Cork Constitution: Pen: Lynch.

The students of Dublin University (Trinity College) got a taste of what most teams are getting from Nenagh Ormond at the moment, a teak tough defence that is hard to break down, and in possession, the ability to conjure tries through both the forwards and the backs in recording a bonus-point victory.

It wasn’t one of Nenagh’s better performances, slow to get going but two tries each either side of half time saw them create a scoreboard buffer as they had no fewer than four players sin-binned in the final thirty minutes, two for flanker Joe Coffey which resulted in a red card.

However, despite being a man short for the last 31 minutes and two short for a period, their defensive line never looked like being breached, aided a superb performance by skipper Kevin O’Flaherty who time and again picked off the students lineout close to the Nenagh line, never allowing them turn penalties into scores.

Nenagh fell foul of referee Rob McGreer who was very strong on the high tackle against both sides with Trinity’s Dylan Ryan also binned in the game which had an edge to it right from the start.

Dublin University have been a stable force in the AIL and would have been keen to give Nenagh Ormond a welcome to division 1B rugby, and they did that in the opening ten minutes, pinning the home side back. They turned down two kickable penalties to turn their early pressure into points, but Kevin O’Flaherty made the first of at least five steals in the lineout.

Centre Willie Coffey returned to the starting line-up and a steal at the breakdown allowed Nenagh the chance to get out of their own half for the first time, but it took the home side nearly twenty minutes to create their first sustained attack with Aussie debutante Angus Blackmore making the break from the base which came to nothing.

However, Nenagh’s pressure led to a penalty on 22 minutes which Conor McMahon converted to open the scoring. It was an even contest for the most part, but an inadvertent break provided the initiative for Nenagh as they lost prop Niall O’Gorman to injury in the 27th minute, but his replacement Sean Frawley made a massive impact as they minced the Dublin University scrum up to half time, providing the platform of attack.

From one such penalty in the 36th minute which resulted in a lineout inside the 22, Nenagh mauled to short of the line and after patient play, Angus Blackmore touched down against a short-handed defence with Conor McMahon adding the extras.

Nenagh managed a second try before the break, winning another penalty on the Dublin University scrum from where Ben Pope kicked to fifteen metres out. From the lineout, Nenagh made the hard yards and when they had sucked in a number of defenders, Conor O’Shaughnessy carried a Trinity defender over the line to touch down in the right corner. The try was unconverted, but Nenagh held a healthy 15-0 lead at the break.

Such was the dominance of the Nenagh pack, Dublin University sent all four replacement forwards into the game at half time, including changing the entire front row and it certainly improved things as it was they who got the upper hand in the scrum in the second half.

A Matt Lynch penalty gave Dublin University a positive start within two minutes of the restart but three minutes later Nenagh crossed for their third try, mauling strongly from a lineout on the 22, with Dylan Murphy touching down, converted by McMahon for a 22-3 lead.

Nenagh Ormond lost flanker Joe Coffey to the sin-bin on 46 minutes for tripping, but the momentum stayed with the home side who scored the bonus-point try on 54 minutes, which epitomised the approach they have been playing over the last two years.

Pinned inside their own five-metre line, Conor McMahon made a break down the short-side and carried out to the ten-metre line from where he passed to Nicky Irwin on his shoulder. From the breakdown, Ben Pope kicked long with the bounce of the ball favouring the home side with Pope getting on the end of his kick, from where he passed to Josh Rowland who crossed in the right corner for an unconverted try for a 27-3 lead.

That is how the final scoreline would be despite a spikey closing period with Willie Coffey sent to the bin on 66 minutes for a high tackle with replacement prop Joe O’Keeffe following suit on 74 minutes for a similar infringement.

Down to thirteen players, Trinity sensed an opportunity to try and get something from the game but Nenagh were in no mood to accomodate that and kept their line in tact to get their league campaign off to the perfect start ahead of their first away game against Blackrock College next Saturday.

TEAMS – Nenagh Ormond: Josh Rowland (7); Conor O’Shaughnessy (7), Angus Blackmore (8), Willie Coffey (8), Conor McMahon (7); Ben Pope (7), Nicky Irwin (7); Niall O’Gorman (6), Dylan Murphy (8), Colm Skehan (7); Jake O’Kelly (8), Kevin O’Flaherty (Capt 9); Joe Coffey (7), Evan Murphy (7), John O’Flaherty (7).

Reps: Sean Frawley (7) for O’Gorman (27 inj); Charlie O’Doherty (6) for Irwin (54); Derek Corcoran (6) for O’Shaughnessy (57 inj); John Brislane (6) for J O’Flaherty (61); Jack O’Keeffe (6) for Skehan (64); Jack Devanny (7) for D Murphy (73); Colm Skehan for E Murphy (76); Nicky Irwin for Blackmore (80+2).

Dublin University: Matty Lynch (6); Aidan Henry (6), Louis McDonough (Capt 6), Hugh Goddard (6), Kofi Barton Byfield (7); Zach Quirke (6), Oscar Cawley (8); Sami Sjoberg (5), Zach Baird (5), Cole Kelly (5); Max Dunne (6), Jack Kearney (6); Dylan Ryan (5), Jack O’Neill (7), David Walsh (6).

Reps: Johanes Dreischmeier (7) for Baird (HT), Arthur O’Rahilly (7) for Sjoberg (HT); Conall Henchy (7) for Kelly (HT); Cuan Doyle (6) for Ryan (HT); Harry Roche Nagle (6) for Quirke (57); Dylan Ryan (6) for Dreischmeier (72); Paul McConkey (6) for Walsh (74).

Referee: Rob McGreer.