Roscrea upset Balbriggan in Towns Cup
RUGBY: Bank of Ireland Leinster Provincial Towns Cup 1st Round
Roscrea 18
Balbriggan 13
Roscrea's fine form continued into the Leinster Provincial Towns Cup as they defeated Balbriggan in Streamstown on Sunday.
The Towns Cup, like many similar knockout competitions still has a certain romantic attraction, one that can really only be found in amateur rugby. It can occasionally provide unfortunate mismatches as team from different leagues meet, but it can also entertain with when two unacquainted clubs pair off for a winner takes all battle.
When Roscrea welcomed Balbriggan to Streamstown on Sunday the fixture was definitely in the latter category and although two divisions separated the clubs, the teams put on a superb show for the large crowd in attendance.
Both sides set out their intensions from the first whistle exhibiting incredible physicality in attack and defence. The swirling wind played a huge factor in the opening exchanges as kicking was a bit of a lottery, however it was from a kick and then an early line out on the Balbriggan ten metre line that eventually saw Roscrea score first.
Hooker Mikey Fitzgearld found jumper Malachy Maher perfectly and the maul was set which gained ground. Then after a series of rucks and drives by the forwards, Roscrea captain Ger Stone slalomed his way through the Balbriggan defensive line and touched down. Sam Quelly’s subsequent conversion went narrowly wide as the wind pushed it past the post, although he was to make up for the miss not long after with an expertly taken penalty from a similar position.
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