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2010/11 President
Don O'Malley |
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Read
President's Message |
2010/11
Club Captain
TBA |
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Message
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1970 Reunion
Pics Here |
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Members of the Crescent College Class of
1970 were in Limerick for a class reunion,
and our President, Glenn Quin, who was a
member of the Class of 1970, invited his
former classmates to attend our pre match
lunch before the Trinity AIL game.
Pictured at our lunch were, standing l-r, Turlough
O’Brien,
Derry O'Connell, John Riordan, Glenn Quin,
our President, Michael Horgan, and Brien
Morris, seated l-r, Willie Green, Gary
Curtin, Nessan O'Flynn, and Billy Kelly.
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Visitor Number |
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Since 10/02/2009 |
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Committee News |
Following on from the
AGM, at the first
meeting of the new
Committee the following
individuals were co-opted to
Committee.
Anna Murray, Pat Liston,
Pat Monaghan and Chris
Cullinan
The Chairpersons of the
various Sub Committees
were finalised and read
as follows:
| Rugby: |
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Eugene O'Riordan |
| Grounds: |
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Dermot McGovern |
| House: |
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Pat Liston |
| Underage: |
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Pat Monaghan |
| Finance: |
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Niall Sheehy |
| Ways & Means: |
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Dan Gallery |
| School Liaison Officer: |
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Chris Cullinan |
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AGM News |
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The
Old Crescent RFC
Committee elected for
the 2010-2011 season is:
| Don O'Malley |
President |
| Eddie Frost |
Senior Vice President |
| Vincent Banks |
Junior Vice President |
| Dale Harrow |
Hon. Secretary |
| John Earls |
Hon. Treasurer |
| Ken Lyons |
Munster Branch Delegate |
| Bill Hanly |
Hon. Fixtures Secretary |
| Frank Larkin |
Media Officer |
| Pat Rickard |
Club Registrar |
| Niall Sheehy |
Ex-Officio |
Elected
Committee members, Tom
Barry, Dan Gallery,
Dermot McGovern, Anthony
O’Dwyer, and Eugene
O’Riordain
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Club Notes
(week ending Fri 7-May) |
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With
our senior rugby over
for another year, Club
focus turned to our
Under Age section where
our season reached an
exciting if
disappointing climax
last week, when we
played Garryowen in two
Cup games at under 14
and 15 levels.
And so the final act of
our Under 14 season
arrived last Wednesday
evening with our 4th
match in 7 days when we
lined out against
Garryowen in the cup
final at Annacotty. We
started brightly with
quite a bit of both
possession and territory
and were not at all
flattered to be ahead by
5 - 0 early on, through
a try out wide by Daniel
O'Keeffe. Other
opportunities came our
way, which we were
unable to avail of, as
we also sought to
nullify threats from
Garryowen attacks
through strong tackling
in mid-field, in
particular by Paul
McNamara. Mid way
through the first half
Garryowen changed their
tactics to drive more up
through the middle and
we found this difficult
to cope with as they
mauled successfully and
protected their
possession, resulting in
them gaining significant
territory and two tries
before half time.
Garryowen also got the
all important first
score of the second half
to open up the margin
and with a final score
in the last few minutes,
we were well beaten by
22-5 in the end. We
returned to the Club
after the match where we
were treated to a
fabulous BBQ by Helen
O'Donnell, which helped
with the 'healing' -
many thanks Helen.
Thanks also to Peter
Doyle who did all the
organisation of our
recent tour to Cork. It
has been a long season
and one in which our
young players have made
great progress from our
first competitive match
in mid/late September,
losing just 2
competitive matches all
season (unfortunately
the league final and the
cup final) - the
commitment of the
players and their
parents has been
magnificent and now we
all look forward to a
long summer break and
re-grouping in the
autumn.
Our U15’s played UL Bohs
the evening after they
returned from their
Wales tour. As all but
three of the squad were
on tour, no one was sure
what type of performance
would follow for our
side. To their immense
credit, the players to a
man raised their game
and put in a tremendous
performance. We started
brightly and went in
front with a try from
Cormac Blake but
conceded three kickable
penalties all of which
were converted to leave
us trailing 9-5 at the
interval. Playing with
the conditions in our
favour, we continued to
pressurise the UL Bohs
defense and regained the
lead with a try from
Mark Rickard which was
converted by James
Cusack. We then
increased our lead with
a 50 meter penalty goal
from Cormac Blake and
captain Robbie Scott
rounded off the scoring
with a fine try to give
us victory by 22 points
to 9 and set up a semi
final clash away to
Garryowen on the
Wednesday. We took the
field on Wednesday in
Garryowen for our third
game in five days and
again took the game to
our hosts. With our
defensive work on a par
with teams playing at
the highest level, we
succeeding in
frustrating our
opponents. Alas, the rub
of the green was not
with us and we conceded
a freak try after a
penalty attempt for
Garryowen came back off
a post to give Garryowen
a 5-0 half time lead.
The second half was
pretty much a carbon
copy of the first, with
our defence holding firm
and some great attacking
play failing at the last
pass. We conceded six
further points from
penalty goals and so our
season ended in defeat
by 11 points to nil. It
was a extremely brave
performance from the
lads and they have shown
that they are among the
elite teams in their age
group. Credit too to the
coaching staff for the
way in which they have
brought on this team
over the season and we
look forward with
confidence to the under
17 competitions in 2
years time.
Looking ahead, Tag Rugby
at Old Crescent RFC
kicks off on Thursday,
13th May, when we expect
the usual large numbers
at Rosbrien for the tag
season.
Finally, another
reminder that our AGM
takes place in the
Clubhouse at 8.00pm on
Wednesday, 26th May.
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Read/Pics on
Under 15 Tour to
Lllanelli & Cup Reports |
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Club Notes
(week ending Fri 30-Apr) |
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In
the only Senior fixture
played last weekend, our
Under 21 team took on UL
Bohemians in the Under
21 Cup Semi Final last
Saturday in Rosbrien.
It was a hard fought
game against a strong
and experienced side.
Lack of competitive
matches over last few
months went against us
and we weren't at our
best against a well
drilled team who have
been playing week in
week out since start of
the year. Old Crescent
were only 19 points to
10 down at half time,
and were right in the
game at that stage.
However, UL Bohs
dominated the second
half and they piled on a
further 34 points
without reply to leave
the final score Old
Crescent 10 points UL
Bohs 53. This game
brought our Under 21
season to a close.
With a lot of the team
underage again next
year, players and
management are looking
forward and planning our
assault on Division One
next season. We
wish the players who are
overage next season all
the best with their
rugby careers and look
forward to seeing them
playing for the senior
team next season and
beyond.
Our Under Age teams
continue their hectic
end to the season with
important cup games
interspersed with long
awaited end of season
tours. Our Under
14s wound their way
frantically to the end
of the season, playing
our 3rd match in 5 days,
when they faced Ennis in
the cup semi final on
Monday evening in Ennis
RFC. With tired bodies
and hard ground we
really did wonder what
sort of a night it was
going to be as after
last weekend's injuries,
we had Geoffrey Coyne
suffer a deep cut
(requiring stitches
after the match) in the
warm up and Diarmuid
McDonnell also suffering
a shoulder injury early
in the first half.
Thankfully we started
very well and inside the
first 10 minutes we had
engaged the sizeable
Ennis pack up front and
whilst perhaps fortunate
not to have suffered a
score against us from
deep due to some loose
tacking and poor
alignment, we did score
out wide with very good
ball from our forwards
enabling the backs to
move the ball wide where
both Michael O'Neill and
Dylan Hennessy (fresh
back from his extended
stay in Florida + Mexico
- high altitude training
!!) were causing havoc
with their strong
running lines resulting
in the opening 3 tries
between them all of
which were converted
with some stunning goal
kicking from the side
lines by both Shane
Eades and Michael
himself. We stayed very
committed to the task at
hand and further scores
before half time,
including one from Paul
McNamara and another
from Dylan had us well
ahead by half time. A
number of changes were
made to the side for the
2nd half and we
continued to control the
game but Ennis got
themselves back into it
with 3 unconverted tries
to one converted try
scored for us by Gerry
Fitzpatrick. This was as
good a performance as we
have given all season
based on a very
committed display by the
forwards and very strong
running by our backs.
Next up, our Under 14’s
play Garryowen in the
cup final on Wednesday
evening (28-Apr) in
Annacotty, while our
Under 15’s play their
league semi-final game
also against Garryowen
in Dooradoyle on the
same evening.
Finally, we send our
congratulations to
Limerick hero Sean
McGowan who is nearing
the end of his epic row
single handed across the
Atlantic. Sean’s
two sons, David and
Patrick, play their
rugby with our Under
13’s and Under 11’s,
respectively.
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Club Notes
(week ending Fri 23-Apr) |
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Old
Crescent Under 21’s were
back in action last
weekend in the Under 21
Cup Quarter Final
against Newcastlewest
RFC. This was
their first game after
an almost a nine week
break from competitive
matches since securing
promotion to Division
One. The team
started slowly as you
would expect after such
a long break from
competitive matches and
Newcastlewest put us
under pressure from
the start. We keep them
out with some good
defence form our
forwards, in particular,
Robbie Walker, Kieran
Murphy and Peter Power.
We began to settle into
the game and started to
find some form and,
after a number of
phases, the ball was
moved across the pitch
to Captain, Shane
O'Carroll, who crashed
over for a well worked
try. Ten minutes
later we worked our way
back into the
Newcastlewest half with
some good inter play
between forwards and
backs, from which the
ball was moved through
the backs to Jurgen
Quinlan who found a gap
and went over for
our second try.
Newcastlewest came right
back at us from the kick
off and kicked two
penalties before the
half time break. In the
second
half, Newcastlewest
worked their way into
our half and scored a
well deserved try,
leaving the score 14 -
13. 15 minutes later,
they scored with a fine
drop goal from their
outhalf leaving the
score 14 - 16. Our lads
didn't panic and we
worked our way into the
Newcastlewest 22 with a
fine run from Lucas
Keane on the wing. We
moved the ball across
the pitch for Cian
O'Brien to break
their defence and cross
the line, leaving the
score to 21 - 14.
Newcastlewest came back
us again but some fine
defence from
replacement backrow,
Keith Hodkinson, and
scrumhalf, Eoin Durham,
we kept them out and
turned the ball
over. Close to the end
of the match we
scored another try which
was converted by outhalf,
Darragh Yelverton, who
had a fine day with the
boot, to leave the final
score, Old Crescent 28
Newcastlewest 16.
We
now take on UL Bohemians
in the Under 21 Cup Semi
Final at 1.00pm next
Saturday in Rosbrien.
Last
weekend was a very busy
weekend for the Under
Age Section of Old
Crescent. Starting
early on Saturday
morning, the team of
Brian Toland, Jim Murphy
and Eoin Kearney were at
Old Crescent bright and
early getting the
pitches ready for the
inaugural John O’Riordan
Festival of Rugby for an
Under Ten’s. Visiting
teams for this blitz
included teams from
Enniscorthy RFC, Tralee
RFC, Midleton RFC,
Ballina-Killaloe RFC,
Presentation RFC,
Corinthians RFC and
Kilfeacle RFC. Wonderful
performances by all
teams reflected well on
their coaches and
mentors. Michael Murphy
manned the PA and kept
the whole audience up to
date with match scores
and the blitz’s
progress. Old Crescent
was delighted to welcome
members of the O’Riordan
family to the event, and
everyone acknowledged
the work and commitment
that the late John
O’Riordan had to Under
Age in Old Crescent.
Special word of thanks
goes to our referee’s,
Pat Rickard, Bernard
Quinn, and Billy Breen,
who gave up their free
time to support the
festival. Thanks also to
Gavin Randles, David
Higgins, and Simon
Fenton, who helped out
during the day. Final
word of thanks goes to
Brian Toland, his
commitment to the event
made sure that it was an
over-whelming success.
Greystones U12 have been
coming to Limerick for a
number of years on their
annual Tour. We have
normally played a blitz
in mini rugby format
however this year we
took the opportunity to
introduce the 15-man
game playing 10 minutes
each half. We had four
teams participating, two
from Greystones, and one
each from UL Bohemians
and Old Crescent. Each
team played three games
and the standard of
rugby all round was
excellent considering
that this was the first
taste of the 15-man game
for most of the lads.
Old Crescent had a squad
of 24 players and we
rotated the players to
give each ample game
time. There was a great
buzz in Rosbrien on
Saturday and there were
plenty of supporters
about after the U10
Tournament and the U21
match. It was a great
thrill for the U21’s to
perform in front of so
many people and this
contributed to a very
enjoyable afternoon.
On
Sunday, we welcomed
Greystones U15's for the
annual Bill Mardell
Memorial Cup. The
late Bill Mardell
coached in Greystones
RFC and was Under Age
Chairman in Old
Crescent, so it is very
appropriate that
Greystones supplied this
year’s opposition. After
a good and lively match,
Lisa Mardell presented
the trophy to Greystones
RFC. Shane and his team
manned the BBQ after the
match and kept everyone
well feed, thank you. It
is hoped that this will
now become a regular
fixture between the two
clubs at this level.
A
final word of thanks to
Anthony and his staff in
the Clubhouse, over the
course of the weekend
his BBQ fed many a happy
player and supporter.
Away
from Rosbrien our U17
travelled to England and
U14 made their way to
Galway for their end of
season tours. Trip
reports are being
reviewed and may yet be
published!
Well
done to everybody
involved in Under Age
rugby in Old Crescent.
Last Saturday and Sunday
was a fantastic weekend
for the Club and on the
evidence of all the
rugby that was played at
the different age groups
the future for Old
Crescent is very bright.
Please remember that
that our Under 21’s are
playing UL Bohemians in
the Semi Final of the
Under 21 Cup, at 1.00pm
next Saturday at home in
Rosbrien. Come out
to Rosbrien next
Saturday at 1.00pm and
support our Under 21’s.
They deserve our support
after the fantastic
season they have had
this year.
Finally, our Hon
Secretary wishes to
remind members that the
AGM of Old Crescent RFC
will take place in the
Clubhouse at 8.00pm on
Wednesday, 26th May.
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Club Notes
(week ending Fri 16-Apr) |
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It was down to earth
for Old Crescent RFC
last weekend after the
excitement and the
triumphs of the previous
weekend when we retained
our Division Two status
and won the McInerney
Cup. Our First’s
lost their final AIL
game against Highfield
RFC in Cork, and our
Thirds were beaten by
Cashel RFC in the Webb
Cup. With our League
position secure, it
would be hard to fault
our team as they found
it hard to get into
their final game against
Highfield. For
Highfield too, it was
also a difficult game,
knowing that before the
kick-off they were
already relegated to
Division Three.
Notwithstanding the
above, both teams
competed strongly in the
brilliant sunshine that
was nearly too warm for
rugby. The game
was evenly contested
until midway through the
first half, Crescent
pressure resulted in an
excellent try by Brian
O’Shea, which he then
converted to give us a 7
points to nil lead.
However, Highfield
replied immediately by
scoring a try which they
didn’t convert.
Highfield went ahead for
the first time just
before half time, when
they were awarded a
penalty which they
converted, to leave the
half time score Crescent
7 and Highfield 8.
Crescent had several
scoring chances in the
second half, which
unfortunately didn’t
come off, and midway
through the second half,
Highfield went further
ahead with an
unconverted try.
They ended the game with
a drop goal just before
the final whistle, to
give a final score of
Crescent 7 and Highfield
16. While it was
disappointing to lose
our final AIL game of
the season, the main
business had been done
the previous weekend
with our epic victory
over Lansdowne, when
they suffered their only
defeat of the season at
the hands of Old
Crescent on their way to
winning Division Two.
Our Thirds came up
against a very strong
Cashel side in their
Webb Cup game last
Saturday and went down
by 12 points to 7.
Perhaps the exertions in
winning the McInerney
Cup the previous
weekend, and the
celebrations that
followed, took their
toll!
In Under Age News,
the Under 14 league
originally scheduled for
mid-January was finally
played against Shannon
in Coonagh last Thursday
evening, when the two
unbeaten teams in the
competition went
head-to-head in the
winner takes all final.
Shannon had the possible
advantage of their semi
final taking three
matches to settle in
recent weeks, while
Crescent had qualified
for this final in
February and so
maintaining our
competitive focus was
all the more
challenging. And so it
proved as we started the
game perhaps somewhat
nervously and took time
to settle and adjust to
the pace and power of
the Shannon pack and
find our feet and get
our bearings on the
large Coonagh pitch.
Shannon were ahead by
10-0 with less than ten
minutes gone, before we
got into the game.
Although we owned the
ball and territory for
the remainder of the
first half, resulting in
many attempts on the
Shannon line,
unfortunately, with just
the one score by Daniel
O'Keeffe, converted from
the side line by Michael
O'Neill, we were 10-7
down at the break. In
the second half we again
took the game to Shannon
who began to vary their
play more and as the
match wore on we began
to suffer a little from
their continued power
and pace. Shannon went
further ahead with a try
and conversion, and
Shane Eades landed a
penalty to bring the
game to 17-7. Try as we
did, we could not
maintain our intensity
and field positions and
retain enough quality
ball to force the
necessary score to tie
the event. Well done to
all our players and
squad, we will have many
more days in finals and
will win in due course.
Well done Shannon and
we'll see you in the Cup
shortly! After their
disappointing defeat in
the league final on
Thursday evening, our
Under 14’s were back in
action on Sunday as we
hosted Teddington RFC.
Played in fantastic
weather, we were against
up against opposition
who started very
strongly and were a few
scores up after 10-15
minutes before our first
and only score of the
game came in the form of
a penalty from Shane
Eades. After Munster
beating Northampton on
Saturday, our Irish
hospitality got the
better of us and we did
not want to beat two
visiting sides on
consecutive days! After
the game we had a
barbeque and made a
presentation to
Teddington RFC, who we
may visit next season.
In fixtures for next
weekend, the only senior
fixture is in Rosbrien
at 2.30pm next Saturday
when our Under 21’s take
on Newcastlewest RFC in
the Under 21 Cup.
Our Under Age have a
busy weekend coming up,
with our Under 10’s
hosting the John
O’Riordain Under 10
Blitz, on Saturday from
11.00am until 2.30pm.
Eight teams from
Munster, Leinster and
Connaght, will take part
in the Blitz which is
held in memory of our
respected past
President, John
O’Riordain, who died
four years ago.
On Sunday, our Under
15’s take on Greystones
RFC in the Bill Mardell
Trophy, at 12.00 noon in
Rosbrien. The late
Bill Mardell was also a
respected member of Old
Crescent, and of
Greystones RFC, who
devoted enormous time
and energy to developing
Under Age Rugby at Old
Crescent RFC.
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Club Notes
(week ending Fri 9-Apr) |
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Last Saturday was a
fantastic day of rugby
for Old Crescent, with
our Firsts securing our
place in the Second
Division next year and
our Thirds winning the
McInerney Cup!
Our First Team played
one of the grittiest
games of the season last
Saturday in pulling off
a memorable victory over
table toppers, Lansdowne
FC, and thereby ensuring
Old Crescent’s place in
AIL Division Two next
season. Lansdowne
came into the game with
13 wins and no defeats
in their march through
Division Two, but right
from the kick-off our
First team showed that
they were not going to
be intimidated by their
illustrious opponents.
Both teams contested the
ball at every
opportunity with no
quarter being given.
Playing with the wind,
Crescent were first on
the scoreboard with a
converted penalty by
Brian O’Shea after 12
minutes. We
continued to pile on the
pressure and were
rewarded with another
penalty midway through
the first half, which
Brian again converted.
Lansdowne looked
dangerous at every stage
but our defence held
strong with some great
tackling. Further
Crescent pressure forced
another penalty from
Lansdowne which Brian
again converted, leaving
the half time score at a
barely believable 9
points to nil lead for
Old Crescent. Crescent
started the second half
in determined mood and
pressure by our pack
brought us to the
Lansdowne line where
long serving James
‘Buffalo’ Cullinane got
in for a super try.
The convert was missed
from out wide to leave
us now 14 points to nil
in front. Lansdowne
however did not give up
and showed why they lead
the Second Division.
With 12 minutes gone in
the second half, they
halved their deficit by
scored a converted try.
Crescent now had an
anxious period, however,
our First’s were buoyed
up by the triumphant
return of our Third’s
with the McInerney Cup
who proceeded to add
their voices to the
already loud Crescent
support on the
sidelines. After further
Lansdowne pressure,
midway through the
second half, Lansdowne
scored a second try out
wide. The convert was
missed to leave Crescent
narrowly ahead by 14
points to 12 with 15
minutes to go. To
the great delight of the
home crowd, Crescent not
only defended the narrow
lead but were deep in
the Lansdowne half when
the final whistle
sounded, leading to
great rejoicing on and
off the pitch.
Earlier, Old Crescent
3rd XV had faced Shannon
in Coonagh at 12.30 in
the McInerney Cup Final,
after losing out in the
toss for home advantage
as their was no
available neutral venue.
The Thirds had defeated
Young Munsters and
Garryowen in previous
rounds and faced into
this match as underdogs
against a Shannon side
who had beaten a strong
Richmond side in their
semi. The game started
at a very high tempo
with neither team
willing to give an inch,
it was the start that
the Thirds wanted as
they came out all guns
blazing signalling their
intent for the
afternoon. With the game
only 15 minutes old, Old
Crescent pressure told,
with the Shannon number
6 being sent to the bin
for an infringement. The
Thirds gained a penalty
and Paul McDonagh duly
converted in very trying
conditions to leave Old
Crescent 3-0 up. In what
was a very physical
first half that’s how
the score remained until
half time as both teams
exerted maximum
defensive pressure on
each other, with the
packs in particular
keeping the tempo at a
very high level. At the
start of the second half
a botched restart gave
the Shannon pack the
impetus they needed.
They were on the front
foot and with the
pressure being applied,
managed to get
themselves into a
scoring position where
they finally managed to
break down the Thirds’
fringe defence and their
number 6 redeemed
himself after his
earlier indiscretion and
got over for their first
try of the game. The try
was unconverted but was
the start of Shannon’s
best period in the game.
Shannon kept the
pressure on after the
restart and worked
themselves down the
pitch to get themselves
into a good field
position which was
rewarded by the whistle
of the referee to give
them a penalty which was
converted by former AIL
top scorer, Andrew
Thompson. Our Thirds got
a deserved foothold in
the Shannon half through
defensive pressure
exerted and pressed home
their advantage at both
scrum and lineout time
to get themselves into
their opponents 22.
After winning clean
lineout ball the pack
set up a driving maul to
present clean ball for
Trevor Whelan which was
used to devastating
effect with John Noonan
making a great break in
the centre and managed
to get his hands break
through the tackle to
offload to John (JOCK)
O’Connor who ran a great
line to cross the
whitewash and levelled
the tie at 8 all. The
score remained at 8
points apiece for the
remainder of the second
half. The first period
of extra time saw some
of the most exciting
rugby of the game being
played. The Crescent
forward pack put
together a great driving
maul, and the backline
released flying winger
Tommy Pratt to score in
the corner. Our
lead was to be short
lived however as the
Shannon team upped the
pace of their game and
after a number of phases
found their winger in
the Old Crescent 22 with
space to play with and
he duly delivered with a
finish to level the tie
again at 13 all. The
second half of extra
time was a blur! The
Thirds got themselves
into the Shannon half of
the field and after
working extremely hard
through the pack, they
had a penalty advantage.
With Shannon players
bearing down, Trevor
Whelan threw an absolute
‘Missile’ of a pass to
Paul McDonagh who
threaded the eye of a
needle with a drop goal
through the cover of the
on-rushing Shannon
backrow! Cometh the
hour, cometh the
man!!!!!! 16-13! This
signalled one of the
most tense 5 minutes of
rugby ever seen at this
level. Old Crescent had
good field position and
looked to finish out the
game. After two line
breaks from Props
Bernard Quinn and Alan
Lynam, the ball was
turned over and Shannon
broke into Old Crescent
territory; with the
defensive line not set,
the Shannon Winger broke
clear and could have
broken Old Crescent
hearts were it not for a
game saving tackle from
backrow Kieran O’Brien.
Old Crescent held their
discipline at this stage
to ensure that Shannon
would not get a
equaliser. This forced
Shannon to spread it
wide and with barely
seconds remaining the
Shannon Winger was once
again tackled by the Old
Crescent cover into
touch at the 5m line.
This was the last play
of the game and this
should have seen the
final whistle, but in
this epic game there was
always going to be one
more chapter! Shannon
stole the Old Crescent
lineout and drove for
the Old Crescent line.
The Thirds held out wave
after wave of Shannon
attacks within the 5
metre line. It was
bodies on the line stuff
and our Thirds weren’t
found wanting, after a
second penalty within
the 5, the outstanding
Odran Power was harshly
sent to the bin leaving
14 to repel the attack.
Three phases later and
Shannon did cross the
line, but could not get
the ball down as every
available limb ensured
that the leather would
not touch the soil. With
the final whistle, the
sheer joy of the thirds
squad, coaching staff
and support was a joy to
see, as all jumped in
the air and hugged on
the sidelines. The
McInerney cup would
proudly be heading to
Rosbrien!!!! The Cup was
presented to Captain,
Bernie Quinn, who
proceeded to thank all
and sundry with a grin
that has yet to be
removed from his face!
The cup was passed to
Coach, Fergal Kearney,
who called each member
of the squad to receive
their medal as all
gathered for a stirring
rendition of the Sloop
John B!
Fixtures for next
weekend: Our
First’s play Highfield
in Cork at 2.30pm next
Saturday in our last
fixture of the AIL
season. Our
Third’s play Cashel in
the Webb Cup at home in
Rosbrien at 2.00pm next
Saturday.
Our U14’s play
Shannon in their delayed
League Final on Thursday
night (8-Apr) in Coonagh
with a 6:45 pm ko.
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Sat 3 Apr - 17:30 |
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Apologies to Buffalo for
getting the try scorer
wrong in our initial
report yesterday!
All
clubs have good days and
bad days and Old
Crescent seems to see
more than its fair share
of bad ones but today
may mark a turning point
in our fortunes.
Old Crescent 14
– 12 Lansdowne
Most neutrals
must have felt with
Crescent languishing at
the AIL Division 2 drop
zone precipice that next
week’s clash with
Highfield would decide
which of the two clubs
would join Greystones in
Division 3 next season,
today’s game against
runaway Division 2
leaders Lansdowne, being
but a formality for
Lansdowne. After last
week’s performance one
had to ask if Crescent
could ever be as bad
again but given what
went before one also had
to wonder if Crescent
had any real chance of
competing against this
exceptional Lansdowne
squad. Before today’s
game Lansdowne’s
statistics read, Played
13, Won 13; Points
scored 408, Points
conceded 152; League
points 60. At the start
of the day Crescent were
all of 40 league points
and 13 places beneath
them. However, as we
were to find out,
miracles do indeed
happen and Crescent
pulled off a shock but
on the day well deserved
win over Lansdowne. With
Brian O’Shea controlling
matters in the centre of
the park and converting
three penalty goals and
with the pack putting in
a herculean effort
culminating in a James Cullinane touchdown.
Crescent’s win was
worthy of any
David-and-Goliath
encounter and means that
we are now safe in
Division 2 next season.
A huge vote of thanks to
the Players and
Management Team and
thank God we now have
that defibrillator, as
at times it seemed that
many of our supporters
may have needed its
recuperation properties,
particularly if we had
had to go to Highfield
next week needing a win.
Shannon 13 – 16
Old Crescent:
In another good
news story for Crescent
our Thirds
won the
McInerney Cup
today when beating
Shannon in Coonagh by 16
points to 13 points.
Congratulations to all
involved.
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Congratulations to our
fellow Shannonsiders
Bruff who today secured
promotion to Division 1B
of the AIL. |
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Club Notes
(week ending Fri 2-Apr) |
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Our
First’s suffered a heavy
defeat by 44 points to 3
to Thomond last Saturday
in the AIL, and we
remain in the danger
zone near the bottom of
Division Two. We
must win at least one of
our two remaining AIL
fixtures to survive in
Division Two.
Thomond scored five trys
without reply from Old
Crescent, although we
had a few changes which,
if they had come off,
could have made it a
very different game.
All
eyes are now focused on
our remaining games, at
home against table
toppers Lansdowne, at
2.30pm next Saturday and
away to Highfield the
following Saturday.
While our League
position is serious, Old
Crescent has been here
before and has fought
its way out of trouble.
With everyone’s support
over the next two
Saturdays, our team are
capable of doing the
business.
Our
First’s did have a well
deserved win in the
O’Donovan Cup over a
full strength Garryowen
side by 24 points to 17
in Garryowen a week ago.
Our
third XV took the field
against Garryowen on
Saturday last in the
McInerney Cup semi
final. Having suffered
defeat against Garryowen
in the latter stages of
the league, Crescent had
a few scores to settle.
During the previous
weeks training, we
suffered the loss of our
starting outhalf, a
restructured backline
took to the field. Paul
McDonagh stepped into
the breach, and his wise
old head brought
composure to the
backline in both attack
and defence. However,
this game was going to
be won and lost in the
pack. Garryowen had a
large rumbling pack, and
our pack had to step up
to the plate to counter
them. We started well
with Paul McDonagh
landing a penalty to
take the lead 3-0.
Garryowen came back into
the game with a penalty
soon afterwards. We made
our way downfield and
our pack put in a good
scrum, Keith Burke made
a break off the base of
the scrum to make good
ground, and the pack
sealed it off, another
sniping break off that
ruck and with quick
hands we moved the ball
to the overlap on the
wing where Tommy Pratt
went over in the corner.
Paul McDonagh’s
conversion went just
wide. Garryowen
responded with a penalty
to leave the score at
8-6. Just before half
time Trevor Whelan got a
crucial score following
good pressure defence
from Tommy Pratt. Paul
McDonagh slotted the
conversion to leave the
score at 15-6 at half
time. The talk at half
time was about
maintaining the
intensity of our game
and after Garryowen got
another penalty, our
pack increased their
effort and set up a maul
off a lineout just
inside the Light Blue’s
10mt line. Trevor Whelan
feinted to go open off
the maul and then darted
around the blind side
and showed good pace and
strength to crash over
the whitewash. Paul
McDonagh missed the
difficult conversion to
leave the score at 20-9.
Garryowen added a
penalty later on to
leave the score at full
time 20-12 to our
thirds. Good
performances all round,
in particular our pack
who had a storming game,
negating the highly
regarded Garryowen maul
throughout the game.
Next
up for our Thirds is the
McInerney Cup Final this
Saturday (3rd April)
against Shannon in
Coonagh, kick off is at
12.30. We’d encourage
all club members to come
out and support the
thirds before the
seniors game in
Rosbrien.
Fixtures next weekend:
Our First’s play
Lansdowne in Rosbrien at
2.30pm next Saturday, in
our final home AIL game
of the season. Our
Thirds play Shannon in
the Final of the
McInerney Cup, away in
Coonagh at 12.30pm next
Saturday. On
Easter Monday, our Under
21’s play Cashel in the
Under 21 Cup at home in
Rosbrien at 2.30pm.In
Under Age news, last
Sunday our Under 14’s
were back on the
'friendly' trail and
hosted Tralee again. We
had a few of our team
away on holidays and a
few 'defected' for a
football match, but we
still had a good line up
and started very
brightly with 2 scores,
one from Shane Eades,
after a lovely break,
and the other from Eoin
Sheehan, who got over
from close range, one of
which was converted by
Shane, to lead by 12-0
after 15 minutes. We
then allowed Tralee to
get into the game and
run at us, particularly
in the forwards, as they
secured more ball and
with their quality backs
opened up the game and
before long it was tied
at 12-12 as they replied
with 2 tries, one of
which was converted. And
although we did score a
further try to put us in
front again, after a
fine break by Fionn
White, which got him all
the way to the line, we
were unable to build on
this and again allowed
Tralee to much ball and
too much space. Tralee
came back with a further
try to tie the game at
17 all going into the
last 5 minutes, and they
clinched the game with a
score with 2 minutes to
go and they then added a
further score in the
last play of the game.
So well done to Tralee.
Having been unbeaten for
much of the season, we
have now lost 3 times in
our last 5 outings, but
all friendlies. Coaches
and players have much
work to be done before
our league final and
next cup outing.
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