Skibbereen U16 Cup Kings

A fantastic performance from centre Jordie O’Brien, scoring two tries and 24 points in total, led Skibbereen to a deserved U16 Cup title in the afternoon’s second game.

It was an all-Cork derby as Skibbereen faced Kinsale, with both sides looking to take local bragging rights back from north Limeick as the sun continued to shine.

The pair swapped penalties from Skibbereen’s Jordie O’Brien and Kinsale full-back Rowan Palmer before Darren Daly crossed the line first for Skibb after a brilliant run, riding the tackle of several defenders before powering over the line.

The second try came soon after as the West Cork side spread it out wide, and Jason Connolly setup Euan O’Donovan to cross right in the corner.

That gave Skibb a good platform to build from, a comfortable 12 point lead at half-time, and unlike the first game they refused to let it slip. O’Brien knocked over another three points just after the half, and Connolly got a try of his own after an excellent diagonal line to beat the Kinsale defence.

The Sharks were becoming submerged by their local rivals, and Jordie O’Brien got a try of his own with an intercept breakway score, and five minutes later doubled his tally with a carbon-copy, finishing in behind the Kinsale defence to make it 39-3.

However, Kinsale refused to give in, and scored arguably the try of the encounter, as Daniel Graham’s inventive offload found Faelan Stewart, whose quick feigns sold the Skibb defence down the Shannon for him to cross under the posts.

A disappointing afternoon at least saw some positives for the Sharks, as they showed great hands to score a second try in quick succession in the corner.

It was always going to be Skibbereen’s day however, and despite O’Brien having a chance to bag his hat-trick they secured the title with a 39-13 victory.