A busy weekend in the All Ireland League saw Lansdown qualify for the league semi-finals, Young Munster fell short of Terenure and more!
With only a couple match weeks left in the All Ireland League the stakes for the teams are higher than ever. Clontarf sit at the top of the of the table comfortably on 67 points with the closest being Lansdowne on 56.
There was no other changes to the table but play-off chasers Cork Con (47), Young Munster (45) and UCD (44) are all within touching distance of each other.
UCC and Ballynahinch are at the bottom of the table with six and eleven points respectively.
Garryowen are safe on 33 points but are out off play-off contention.
Terenure College 18-12 Young Munster
Terenure College kept up their momentum to stay in third place being just two points behind Lansdowne, thanks to a spirited 18-12 defeat ofYoung Munster.
Defences were on top during a sunny first half at Lakelands Park, but Jake Swaine nailed two penalties to add to Terenure’s early opening try from powerful centre Colm de Buitléar for an 11-3 lead.
Strong maul defence from the Cookies coupled with two Evan Cusack penalty goals, made it a two-point game. Terenure’s scrum half Alan Bennie to snipe over for a decisive 67th-minute try.
The game finished up with a score line of 18-12. Young Munster now only sit one point ahead of Dublin University with Cork Con two points clear in fourth.
UCD 3-27 Garryowen
UCD climbed above Garryowen into seventh spot as the Limerick side suffered a 33-27 defeat of the Light Blues at the UCD Bowl. The Dublin side recovered from Jonathan Fish’s early sin-binning to lead 21-10 at the break.
Centre David Ryan netted himself his sixth try in seven games arrived just before half-time, but Garryowen hit back well on the restart with Munster’s Liam Coombes running in an intercept try and Tommy O’Hora also touching down.
UCD captain Bobby Sheehan was sent to the sin bin, Garryowen’s Evan Maher crossed to make it 27-21. The hosts’ brilliant late surge saw Jack Gardiner and Dylan O’Grady both dot down to deny the Limerick men.
Lansdowne 52-21 UCC
Lansdowne guaranteed their presence in the Energia All-Ireland League Division 1A semi-finals with a 52-21 victory over UCC.
Mark McHugh’s Lansdowne side had the bonus point secured by half-time with lively full-back Eamonn Mills bagging a brace, but the concession of three maul tries was a concern.
Clontarf 24-12 Cork Constitution
Clontarf sealed a home semi-final after defeating Cork Constitution 24-12 in business-like fashion at Temple Hill.
The side from Dublin showed their title credentials again. A dominant set piece and a three-try first half salvo setting them up to beat the defending champions who are still hanging on to the last play-off spot.
Ballynahinch 30-19 Dublin University
Trinity are right back in the play-off picture after picking up their second successive victory, winning 30-19 at Ballynahinch who are preparing for the relegation play-off.
Flanker Alan Francis impressed with a brace of tries, one of them following a defence-splitting break from Louis O’Reilly. The students’ maul was a major weapon on the day.
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