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AIL vs. Trinity Match Report |
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Ulster Bank League
Dublin University vs. Bective
29th January 2011 Match report thanks to Conor Donnelly Bective overcame a valiant Dublin University in a tight contest at the picturesque setting of College Park last Saturday. Bective fired the opening salvo of the game on four minutes, when Trinity conceded a penalty for not rolling away near the halfway line. Rangers, out half, Gearoid O’Grady, slotted the kick over to give the visitors an early three point advantage much to the delight of the vocal Bective support that had travelled in numbers for this crucial clash. However the euphoria would disappear soon after when a Bective player was shown a yellow card after being adjudged to have taken out a Trinity player with the ball nowhere in sight. The game was a clash of two different attacking phlisophies.The home team looked to play an expansive game and they looked very dangerous early on when they were in full flow with Number 8, Alan Mathews, particular effective in carving up openings in the Bective defence. While the visitors chose to counter with a tight, controlled, game plan designed to keep the ball away from the speedy Trinity attack and play to the strength of the Bective pack that bossed their opponents.
On twelve minutes the students made their one man advantage count a breakaway down the wing after some poor Bective tackles brought play into the Twenty-Two .From there the ball was passed to centre, Conor Colclough, who ran in for a try to give the home team the lead. The conversion was missed and the scoreboard read 5-3 in favour of the students. On seventeen minutes Bective replied after a good scrum forced Trinity to concede a penalty. Bective opted for the posts and O’Grady, once again took all three points. The outhalf would added to the his tally soon after when a powerful run by Bective ,Number eight, Mike Essex, brought play just outside the Trinity twenty-two, once more the students were penalised at the Breakdown and O’Grady collected three more points to stretch the lead to 9-5. Bective when playing the tight and controlled game were stifling the Trinity attack but some loose play by Rangers allowed Trinity to advance the ball and put Rangers under huge pressure. That pressure turned to points on thirty three minutes when Bective gave away a penalty in their twenty-two which James O’Dongohoe, converted to make it a one point game. Bective struck again just before half time with the ball in the Trinity twenty-two, Rangers showed some excellent patience as they recycled the ball and went through multiple phases probing and jabbing at the Trinity defence looking for a crevice to breakthrough. When one was not forth coming Outhalf, Geroid O’Grady dropped back in the pocket and struck a drop goal to make it 12-8. Rangers would have been very happy to take a four point lead into the interval but the home side had other ideas. Trinity gathered the ball and quickly moved it across the field eventually finding its way to winger, Shane Hanratty, in space.Hanratty raced up the touch line and scored a try after a raft of sloppy Bective tacklers missed the opportunity to bring him down. Instead it would be the student who would be the ones enjoying a 13-12 lead at the break. With the words of Coach, Kevin Lewis, ringing in their ears after half time, Bective came out the better of the two sides. Gearoid O’Grady proved he was just as deadly kicking from hand as he was off the tee as time and time again his precision kicks to the corners pinned Trinity back. Trinity struggled to get their hands on the ball for much of the second half and when they did the frustration of not having the ball for long periods meant that over eagerness when in possession resulted in turnovers. Bective soon cashed in on all their possession. Full Back, Cormac O’Beirne, collected his own kick and raced away up to the Trinity line where he was stopped. Some powerful work by the hugely impressive Bective pack saw the ball creep inch by inch to the line. With all the Trinity defenders sucked in Rangers showed they could play expansive rugby too moving the ball out wide right where they had numbers allowing, Will Hanley, to score the only Bective try of the match in the corner. Gearoid O’Grady added a further three points from a penalty minutes later to make it a 20-13 score. But despite Bective, enjoying much of the ball and territory there was still only a converted try in it and Trinity who had shown they were capable of scoring from anywhere pushed to find a score in the final quarter of the match. They cut the lead when Bective had another man sent to the bin and from the resulting penalty James O’Donoghoe, sent the ball over the bar to make it 20-16. However fittingly it would be the boot of Bective’s, Georoid O’Grady, who would decide the contest when Rangers, won a penalty in front of the Trinity posts.O’Grady who would finish the game with a personal points tally of eighteen and whose game management in the second half had being a thing of beauty slotted over the relatively simple kick to give Bective a hard fought 23-16 win. The result sees the club rise to third place in the table as the push for promotion continues. |
