Tullow shock hot favourites Carlow in Under-17 final
TULLOW 24 CO CARLOW 11
A TEAM which could even not be assembled for the Culleton Plate in January, was gathered in one final bid for silver and added salt to Co. Carlow wounds of losing the Culleton Cup final the previous Monday when toppling the strong favourites in the South East under 17 final at Black Gates on Friday.
It was a tremendous performance by the Tullow pack, but victory must be viewed in the light of Carlow's loss of international Thomas Daly with a knee injury eight minutes into the second half, followed by yellow for Adam Dowling for a late tackle two minutes later, and then dismissing injury to Leinster player Eoin Stynes.
After an exchange of penalties from Stephen Nolan and Daly by the sixth minute, Daly put Carlow in front with a fine right corner try following a gutsy burst by Dowling; both players surging through several tackles en route.
Daly then converted from 33 metres for not releasing. Carlow looked in total control, with Pavel Tarasov stopped short of the pavilion corner following good work by Thomas Whitney and Michael Mannion.
Tullow unravelled Carlow plans as the visitors became disorganised with the loss of three players; upping the pressure with Fionn O'Gorman bursting for the line and Michael Liston held up over it.
A minute later they were in; driving by Robert Dowse Henry Hegarty and Dowse again resulting in a try by Tom Eustace in the left corner with Stephen Nolan converting.
The initiative was now firmly with the home team with Liam O'Halloran, Jack Browne, Richard Cooper and Dowse maintaining the pressure. Dylan May was denied a try in the right corner but the force of home pressure finally saw Dowse touch down in the same spot after some excellent support from lineout man Conor Kearney, with Nolan superbly goaling in the 22nd minute.
It was now all Tullow and they were over the line again in the 32nd minute of a 46 minute half when, after a marvellous Nolan touch on the right the ball was moved left from the line with the burly centre diving over under the posts. He goaled his score.
It hardly mattered that Eustace was binned in the closing minutes as Tullow were riding a wave of enthusiasm of skinning a Carlow team in a final; the teams sharing two previous meetings.
What significance the loss of players is arguable, but Tullow rose to a very high competitive level recalling the epic Tullow packs of decades ago. O'Halloran, Browne, Michael Murphy, Cooper and Dowse were forceful and successful, with Eustace and centres Nolan, O'Gorman and under 19 Paddy McCall stretching the Carlow defence on every ball.
Carlow, shell-shocked from their Culleton disappointment, lost the plot with the retiral
TULLOW
of Daly and Stynes, yet John Lyons, Mannion, Christophe Chall and Ronan Farrell did their best in the pack with 'lost' players Stynes, Daly and Dowling cream of the backs; their absence diminishing the visiting challenge.
Tullow put into eight of the 13 scrums and eleven of the 21 lines and were awarded 11 of the 16 penalties.
CO. CARLOW
- PAUL DONAGHY
