AIL Round Robin Qualifier
Instonians 12
Enniscorthy 27
Enniscorthy knew that travelling to Shawsbridge to take on Instonians in the AIL Round Robin qualifier was going to be a tough ask but in the opening 40 minutes they produced an almost flawless performance to lead the home team 24 nil at half time and leave the home supporters shell shocked.
Instonians the Ulster Champions were relegated from the AIL in 2013 and had former Ulster and Ireland scrum half Paul Marshall in their line-up. Marshall won 206 Ulster Caps and he also has 3 Irish Caps which he picked up in 2013.
It was an ideal day for rugby on an excellent pitch with a slight cross wind.
Instonians are also celebrating their 100th Anniversary but Enniscorthy were not in a giving mood.
The defence was strong and they were lethal with the ball in hand and there was just 2 minutes on the clock when they produced their first score, out half Ivan Poole chipped over the home team’s rushing defence and fullback Richard Dunne grabbed the ball and crossed the line. Poole added the conversion for a dream start.
It was all Enniscorthy as they kept up the relentless pace although Instonians did have a chance inside the 22 with a driving maul which Enniscorthy defended brilliantly.
Enniscorthy won a line out 30 meters from the Instonians end line which Ivan Poole flashed to Killian Lett who in turn fed the ball to Ivan Jacob outside him he cut in field but had Richard Dunne on his shoulder and the fullback touched down for the 2nd try and with Poole adding the conversion it was 14 nil after 15 minutes.
They suffered a blow then when Prop Angelo Todisco had to go off injured to be replaced by Conall Kavanagh. Matt Fitzpatrick made a superb break through the middle but his pass went to ground and Enniscorthy recovered the ball. 10 minutes before half time Enniscorthy added a marvellous 3rd try which was when an Instonians move broke down Ivan Poole basketball style threw the ball to his left to Daniel Pim who had left wing David O’Dwyer in support and Ivan Jacob came flying off his opposite wing to take the ball and touch down for the 3rd and decisive try which Ivan Poole again converted.
Enniscorthy produced a terrific counter attack after turning over the ball and Instonians centre David Scott strayed offside which gave Ivan Poole an easy 3 pointer in front of the posts and a 24 nil half time lead.
Right from the kick off Ivan Jacob picked up a loose ball and almost ran the length of the pitch but was stopped short of the line. Referee Michael Scanlon in consultation with his touch judge saw an infringement at the start of the move however and awarded a penalty to the home team. Out half Richard McCarthy kicked for touch and from the resulting line out full back Bradley McNamara touched down in the right corner to give the home team some hope and McCarthy added the conversion 24-7
Enniscorthy’s defence was excellent as the pressure from the home team grew and but they did give away some easy penalties which won’t have pleased the coaching staff.
It was a much tighter 2nd half no doubt but Enniscorthy were prepared to do the hard yards and none more so than Killian Lett who produced some outstanding carries in the centre. Enniscorthy’s ability to spoil the home side’s mauls was also significant. Enniscorthy suffered another blow when they lost young 18-year-old 2nd row Stephen Hadley with a shoulder injury after 60 minutes.He was replaced by Liam Stamp.
As the game entered the last 15 minutes the Enniscorthy scrum came under a lot of pressure and they eventually had Conall Kavanagh yellow card and whilst he was off there was uncontested scrums. Enniscorthy made a rare visit to the Instonians half when Nick Doyle and Killian Lett combined to set up a move which was halted illegally by the Instonians defence and this gave Ivan Poole an easy kick from in front of the posts to extend the lead to 27-7.
In injury time the home side scored a consolation try with winger Ross O’Donnell scoring in the corner. The conversion was missed. Enniscorthy almost scored again but a forward pass had an Ivan Jacob try disallowed.
This was a superb team performance although Richard Dunne, Killian Lett, Ivan Jacob, Ivan Poole, Arthur Dunne, Alan Jacob, Paddy Waters, Timmy Morrisey and Nick Doyle were to the fore;
Coach Declan O’Brien speaking after the game was delighted “We were excellent in the 1st half but we tired slightly in the 2nd and gave away far too many penalties which we will talk about during the week. I felt that we could have actually scored more tries but it was not easy to come all, this way and get a win and I am delighted for the lads who have put in serious shift this season. It is only phase 1 of the job done, we are at home to Clonmel next Saturday who beat Connemara 31-21 and secured a bonus point. It is all to play for now and let’s hope our injuries are not too serious. I am calling on every body in Enniscorthy to get out and support us on Saturday and by the way thanks to the terrific support we had today here in Belfast on a job well done.” He concluded.
Team: Angelo Todisco (Conall Kavanagh 20mins), Davie Murphy (Jamie Barron 70 mins), Paddy Waters, Stephen Hadley (Liam Stamp 65mins), Timmy Morrissey, Tom Ryan (Capt.), Alan Jacob, Nick Doyle, Arthur Dunne, Ivan Poole (Hughie O’Neill 70mins), David O’Dwyer, Daniel Pim, Killian Lett, Ivan Jacob, Richard Dunne.
