Young Munster Are Early Pacesetters

Young Munster were the only side to claim maximum points in the opening series of games in Division 1A of the Ulster Bank All Ireland League.

Shannon 3, Young Munster 36.
Young Munster, who were strong contenders for the Ulster Bank All Ireland League title last season, showed they will be serious challengers again this time with a bonus point victory over old rivals Shannon under the lights at Thomond Park.
In a cagey opening thirty minutes Munster led 6-3 with a penalty from Brian Haugh and a drop goal by Gareth Quinn-McDonogh to a Ben Sargent penalty. A try by Mark Doyle after both sides were reduced to fourteen players following a melee with a yellow card being issued to either side saw the Cookies lead 11-3 at the interval.
Two penalties by Haugh and a try by Dom Lespierre extended Munster’s advantage. Late tries from Ger Flaherty and Doyle both converted by Haugh saw Munster’s got top of the table.
Scorers Shannon: B Sergeant pen,
Young Munster: M Doyle 2 tries, J Lespierre, G Flaherty, B Haugh 3 pens, 2 cons, G Quinn-McDonagh drop goal.
Shannon: Richie Mullane; Cathal O’Neill, Brian Smith, Willie O’Connor, Mike D’Arcy; Ben Sergeant, Rob Guerin; Marcus Horan, Duncan Casey, Kevin Griffin; Johnny Sheeran, Dan Heffernan; James Murphy, John Shine, Mike Essex.,
Replacements: Garry McNamara, Darragh Fitzpatrick, Fergal Walsh, Mike Culhane, Darragh Turner.
Young Munster: Craig O’Hanlon; John Lespierre, Mark Doyle, Luka Kuntz, Darragh O’Neill; Garreth Quinn-McDonogh, Brian Haugh; Ger Flaherty, Ger Slattery, Darragh Cantillon; Sean Duggan, Darren Gallagher; Colin Liston, Luke Russell, Neville Melbourne.
Replacements: Mike Madden, Ger Bourke, Hugh McGrath, Pat Fitzgerald, Mike Prendergast.

Cork Constitution 22, Clontarf 20;
Cork Constitution marked the opening of their new club house with a dramatic injury time win over Clontarf at Temple Hill.
Clontarf led 10-3 at half time with a try from Cathal O’Flynn and a conversion and penalty by Richard Lane to a penalty by Gerry Hurley for the home side.
Dermot O’Meara increased the Dublin side’s advantage with a try and Lane converted. James Ryan replied with a try for Constitution on fifty two minutes which Hurley converted. Hurley then scored a try for Con’ to leave it 17-15. Lane extended Clontarf’s advantage with a try to leave five between the sides.
Seven minutes into injury time Darragh Lyons levelled with a try and Hurley’s conversion secured victory for the Temple Hill side.
Scorers Cork Constitution: G Hurley try, 2 cons, pen, James Ryan, D Lyons tries.
Clontarf: C O’Flynn, D O’Meara tries, R Lane 2 cons, 2 pens.
Cork Constitution: Darragh Lyons: Robert Clune, Scott Deasy, Pat Parfray, Conor Desmond; Johnny Holland, Gerry Hurley; Arthur Galvin, Andy O’Driscoll, John Ryan; Brian Hayes, Cathal O'Flaherty; Graham Lawlor, Brian O’Hara, James Ryan.
Replacements: Andrew Cudmore, Brian Cagney, Dave O’Brien, Brendan Cuttris, Cathal Quinn.
Clontarf: Timmy McCoy; Richie Lane, Conor Keegan, Collie O’Shea, Mick McGrath; Evan Ryan, Dermot O’Meara; Royce Burke-Flynn, Cathal O'Flynn, Tadhg Furlong; Ben Reilly, Conor O'Keeffe; Simon Crawford, Adrian D'Arcy, Martin Garvey.
Replacements: Ben Barclay, Jonathan Larbey, Tom Byrne, Sam Cronin, Matt D’Arcy.

Garryowen 19, Dolphin 3;
The boot of Jamie Gavin was the deciding factor for Garryowen who had a comfortable win over Dolphin at Dooradoyle.
Gavin struck an early penalty and had two more on the board when helping his side to a 9-3 interval lead.
Eamonn Mills kicked a Dolphin penalty.
Garryowen dominated the second half but could manage only a single try thanks to a resolute Dolphin defence.
But they were eventually breached when Barry O’Mahony got in.
Gavin put over the conversion and then added his fourth penalty to complete a win that will enhance Garryowen's hopes of a higher placing than last season.
Scorers Garryowen: B O’Mahony try, J Gavin con, 4 pens.
Dolphin: E Mills pen.
Garryowen: R O’Mahony; C O’Shea, C Hircock, C Doyle, J McInerney; J Gavin, N Cronin; JP Cooney, Rael, R Brosnan; A McCloskey, D Sherry; S Buckley, B O’Mahony, TJ Anderson.
Replacements: C Walsh, P O’Shea, A Kennedy, A Kavanagh, G Ryan.
Dolphin: N Whalley; R Scannell, C Bohane, D Barnes, J Kiernan; E Mills, C Bannon; C Condon, N Scannell, J Cronin; C Rowe, D O Mahoney; M Cronin, S Dougal, B O’Callaghan.
Replacements: W Foley, J Leahy, D O’Shea, E O’Shaughnessy, B Keeshan.

St. Mary's College 17, U.L. Bohemian 13
Defending champions St. Mary’s College got their campaign off to a winning start with a hard earned win over newly promoted U.L. Bohemian at Templeville Road.
JJ Hanrahan gave UL the lead with a penalty after twenty one minutes but replacement Marcus O’Driscoll drove over the line after being introduced minutes later. Ray Crotty converted and also added a penalty for a 10-3 half time lead.
Kevin Croke added a try which Chris Lilly converting, but Bohes came storming back with a try from Rory White and Hanrahan converted and also added a penalty.
Scorers St Mary’s College: M O’Driscoll, K Croke tries, R Crotty pen, con, C Lilly con.
U.L. Bohemian: R White try, JJ Hanrahan con, 2 pens.
St. Mary’s College: Conor Hogan; Ray Crotty, Stephen Grissing, Philip Brophy, Darren Hudson; Andrew Burke, Matthew D’Arcy; Jack McGrath, Dylan Fawcett, Robert Sweeney; Ciaran Ruddock, Gareth Logan; Kevin Sheahan, Gareth Austin, Kevin Croke.
Replacements: Chris Lilly, Marcus O'Driscoll, Peter Starett, Kurt Haupt, Colm McMahon
U.L. Bohemian: Ben Martin; Martin McPhail, Mossie Lawlor, Niall Kenneally, Darren Moroney; JJ Hanrahan, Derek Farrell; Tom Doyle, Sean Henry, Alex Simpson; Ed Kelly (Capt), David Foley; Ed Rossiter, Ian Condell, Sean Rennison.
Replacements: Garry Walsh, Conor Kindregan, Brian Walsh, Tim Rafferty, Rory White.

Bruff 25, Ballymena 5.
Two superb tries, one in each half, sent Bruff on their way to handing out a big defeat to Ballymena at Kilballyowen Park in this Division 1b contest.
It was, nevertheless, a lively affair in which two Ballymena players and one from Bruff were shown yellow cards.
Bruff did not take long to get in front when the visitors were penalised for off-side after thirteen minutes and Brian Carroll landed the penalty.
A superb break by Mark Cosgrave paved the way for the opening try. He cut inside before offloading to fullback Brian Deady who, in turn, cut back inside to touch down. Carroll converted and he then landed a penalty in added time to the half.
By this stage Bruff had earned dominance in the scrum and it was that platform that led to the penalty.
The outcome was decided after 48 minutes with a brilliant individual try by centre Gary Leonard. He picked up a loose ball and raced 50 meters to touch down to make it 18-0.
Bruff were set to score a third try from a third close-in scrum but as they were about to drive over a Ballymena flanker kicked the ball away and Bruff were awarded a penalty try which Carroll converted.
Ricky Andrew had a late try for a disappointing Ballymena side.
Scorers Bruff: Brian Deady, Gary Leonard tries, pen try, Brian Carroll 2 pens 2 cons.
Ballymena: Ricky Andrew try.
Bruff: Brendan Deady; Mark Cosgrove, Tom O’Callaghan, Gary Leonard, Robert Finn; Barry Enright, Eoghan Maher; Dave Horan, John Hogan, Colm O’Sullivan; Maurice O’Connell (capt), Padraig Clery; Paddy Clery, Danny Keogh, Michael Carroll;
Replacements: Cathal O’Regan, Ger Collins, Dumani Mtya, Willie Casey, Brian Carroll.
Ballymena: R Andrew: N Martin, T Hughes, K McLean, D Montgomery; M Irwin, T Small; A Warwick, J. Burns, M. Irving; C. Smith, D. Whann; A. Hamilton, W. McKay, S. Mulholland.
Replacements: J. Carson, A. Cundell, A. Smyth, M. Foster, J. Andrew.

Bective Rangers 26, Highfield 33;
What an opening day for Highfield as they earned maximum points from their first game in Division 2A of the Ulster Bank League.
With half-time fast approaching, no one could have envisaged the drama that was about to unfold.
Bective were totally dominant and had opened up a 23-3 lead. Paddy O’Toole kicking a penalty for the Cork side.
Highfield finally managed to apply some pressure at the end of the half following a great break by Billy Newman. Jason Carton then powered up the middle and found himself in acres of space to score under the posts with O'Toole converting.
This score gave the Cork side a major boost in confidence and they re-emerged a changed side early in the second half and within minutes scored a second try as Dave Kelly forced his way over the line and O'Toole converted. Bective extended their advantage with a penalty to lead 26-17 but the momentum was firmly in Highfield's favour.
Their forwards were winning all their exchanges and it allowed their dangerous backs to display their attacking skills. Highfield were making big hits in defence and on the hour mark forced a turnover. The ball was hacked forward and Billy Newman pounced on the loose ball to power his way over the line. O'Toole missed the conversion but two penalties saw him give Highfield the lead for the first time with twelve minutes left
The home side were reduced to thirteen with two yellow cards being shown. A quick switch by the impressive Cyprian Jouve allowed Brian Carroll power his way over the line and secure a great bonus point victory for the Woodleigh Park club. Scorers for Bective: F Kenny 2 tries, B Lynn 4 pens, 2 cons,
Highfield: B Newman, J Carton, D Kelly, B Carroll tries, P O'Toole 3 pens, 2 cons.
Bective Rangers: C O'Beirne; F Kenny, C Treacy, R O'Beirn, A Hughes; B Lynn, B Allam; E Ferron, R Sajur, W O'Donovan; O Lennon, A Mulligan; I Cullinane, D Daly, C Harbison. Replacements: J McMahon, J Nolan, D Barron, P McMahon,
Highfield: D Buckely-Barry; B Newman, C Jouve, C Mahony, K Moloney; P O'Toole, K Foyle; J Carton, W Falvey, P Ryan; M Dillane, D Kelly; B Carroll, F Tuohy, M Power.
Replacements: D Keogh, C Downes, J O'Callaghan, M O'Driscoll, D O'Hea.

Midleton 11, Cashel 21.
Cashel playing their first ever game in Division 2A made a winning start with a deserved victory at the Towns Park.
Pat O’Connor put Cashel ahead with a penalty but Paul Daly equalised for the home side. Sean Walsh restored Cashel’s advantage with a try but Anthony McCarthy levelled for Midleton.
Two penalties by O’Connor left it 14-8 to the Tipperary side at half time.
Jeff Hitchmough kicked a penalty for Midleton but a try from Ed Leamy and a conversion and penalty by O’Connor secured the points for the visitors.

Old Crescent got their campaign off to a winning start with a 27-17 win over Queens University at Rosbrien.
James O’Neill, Brendan Guilfoyle and Alan McMahon were try scorers for Crescent and Aidan McNulty kicked three conversions and two penalties.

Relegated UCC made the long journey to Derry and came away with a 45-15 15 victory. Sean Og Murphy scored two tries and kicked six conversions and a penalty. Kevin Slater got two tries and Kieran Stokes and Sylvain Raimondi got one each.

Sunday’s Well 33. Thomond 28.
Sunday’s Well got the better of Thomond in a thrilling encounter at Musgrave Park in this Division 2B contest.
It was end to end for most of the game.
The ‘Well playing into a strong wind made the perfect start with a try from Shane O’Riordan which he also converted after a minute.
Thomond’s out half John Lillis slotted over a long range penalty minutes later and O’Riordan replied for the ‘Well.
Winger Dean O’Brien kicked a drop goal from thirty five meters on the restart to reduce Thomond’s deficit and the visitors went ahead with a try from prop Eoin O’Neill after he finished off a move involving centers Richie Ryan and Kevin O’Mahony and Lillis converted.
The remainder of the half was battle of the out halfs with Lillis kicking a drop goal and two penalties for the Limerick side and O’Riordan replying with two for the ‘Well to leave it 22-16 to Thomond at half time.
It was the ‘Well’s turn to use the wind to their advantage in the second half and the eventually got on the scoreboard approaching the mid-point when Matt Quinlivan cut through the visitors line to score under the posts and O’Riordan converted for a 23-22 lead.
Thomond were back in front minutes later with a Lillis penalty.
The ‘Well dominated the final minutes and scrum half Ian O’Regan restored the ’Well’s advantage with a try following several drives at the Thomond line by the ‘Well forwards and O’Riordan converted.
Riordan extended his sides’ advantage to eight points with a penalty six minutes from time and Lillis earned his side a losing bonus point with a penalty in injury time.
Scorers Sunday’s Well: S O’Riordan try, 3 cons, 4 pens, M Quinlivan, I O’Regan tries
Thomond: E O’Neill try, J Lillis 3 pens, 2 drp gls, con, D O’Brien drp gl.
Sunday’s Well: N Horgan; P Sheehan, R O’Mahony, M Quinlivan, S O’Sullivan; S O’Riordan, I O’Regan; J Barry, John Moynihan, F Moynihan; D Horgan, S Desmond; S Walsh, D Loftus, J Mulcahy.
Replacements: D Blower, Joe Moynihan, E Murphy, M Kavanagh, n Conneely.
Thomond: P Curtis; D O’Brien, R Ryan, K O’Mahony, W Kelly; J Lillis, D Guerin; E O’Neill, E Payne, C Highland; D Foley, E Cunnane; G O’Donnell, L Slattery, C Parkes. Replacements: P McNamara, D Kearly, W Mullally, K Donnelly, M Russell.

Eanna Kelleher scored a try for Clonakilty in their 13-13 home draw with City of Armagh. James Deasy kicked two penalties.

Nenagh Ormond lost away to Rainey Old Boys 22-16. Donal Fogarty scored a try, conversion and three penalties for the Tipperary side.

Results
Ulster Bank League Division 1A: Cork Constitution 22, Clontarf 20;
Garryowen 19, Dolphin 3;
Old Belvedere 9, Lansdowne 16;
Shannon 3, Young Munster 36;
St. Mary's College 17, U.L. Bohemian 13;

Division 1B: Belfast Harlequins 20, U.C.D. 48;
Bruff 25, Ballymena 5;
Buccaneers 17, Ballynahinch 27;
Dublin University 29, Blackrock College 11;
Malone 36, Dungannon 13;

Division 2A: Bective Rangers 26, Highfield 33;
City of Derry 15, U.C.C. 45;
Corinthians 33, D.L.S.P. 15;
Greystones 17, Banbridge 28;
Midleton 11, Cashel 21;
Old Crescent 27, Queens University 17;
Old Wesley 25, Seapoint 18;
Terenure College 19, Galwegians 8;

Division 2B: Clonakilty 13, City of Armagh 13;
Connemara 6, Boyne 24;
Instonians 22, Skerries 20;
NUIM Barnhall 19, Naas 22;
Rainey Old Boys 22, Nenagh Ormond 17;
Sligo 12, Navan 27;
Sunday's Well 33, Thomond 28;
Suttonians 21, Ards 12;