Slow start costs Nenagh Ormond despite brave comeback in Donal Walsh final

RUGBY: Munster Under 21 Donal Walsh Trophy Final

Garryowen 34

Nenagh Ormond 26

Report: Thomas Conway at Thomond Park

MATCH DIGEST

Player of the Match: Marcus Joyce (Garryowen)

SCORERS – Garryowen: Tries - Morrissey, Gleeson, Williams, Joyce, O’Brien. Cons - Joyce (4). Pen – Joyce (1)

Nenagh Ormond: Tries - O’Rourke, Grace, O’Meara, Crofts. Cons - Gleeson (3)

After their heroic semi-final victory over UCC at the Mardyke a fortnight ago, the question on Sunday was could Nenagh Ormond reproduce that scintillating form and conquer a star-studded Garryowen outfit at the home of Munster rugby to become the best under 21 team in the province?

Ultimately, the answer was no, but with plenty of caveats. Garryowen might have prevailed with eight points to spare but Ormond recovered from a disastrous opening quarter to deliver a fiery and courageous sixty-minute performance that had the Limerick side truly rattled.

In the end Garryowen escaped. A touch of class from some of their senior players allowed them to see the game out, but there was no denying the fact that Nenagh, who had found themselves 19-0 down with twenty minutes gone, had returned from the dead to play their part in a wildly entertaining game that sucked in every observer on a cold March day in Thomond Park.

It could, and perhaps should, have been all over after twenty minutes. Three quick-fire tries by Seán Morrissey, Harry Gleeson, and scrum-half Chulainn Williams, enabled Garryowen to surge ahead unstoppably.

They were in commanding mode, with Marcus Joyce pulling the strings from out-half and the aforementioned Gleeson leading the pack.

There had been some positive indicators from Nenagh early on, with the effervescent Fionn Higgins whizzing forward from the back, but Garryowen quickly assumed control.

Nenagh joint-captain Brian O’Rourke reignited hope when he slid over the line on 35 minutes, but a subsequent penalty from the boot of Joyce seemed to quell any momentum Nenagh had been building.

Ormond, however, refused to die and just on the cusp of half-time, scrum-half Tom Crofts swept a gorgeous looping pass to Charlie Grace, who finished with aplomb. With the score now at 22-14, there was a sense that Ormond had found a route back into the game.

Nenagh started the second half with the same confidence and vigour with which they had ended the first. Sam Cusack broke into space, momentarily opening the field up, but he was subsequently taken down.

Garryowen, however, were starting to find form once again. Intense pressure inside the Nenagh 22 led to a breakdown in Ormond’s discipline. A yellow card was dished out to Mason Cawley and suddenly Ormond were reduced to fourteen.

On 57 minutes, Marcus Joyce demonstrated sublime footwork to capitalise on a pocket of space before rounding several players and landing underneath the posts.

It seemed as if that would be it, but Nenagh weren’t finished. Fionn O’Meara dotted down on 61 minutes, following a serious effort from the Nenagh pack, and four minutes later, Tom Crofts went over in the corner, reducing the deficit to three.

All of that made for a frantic, helter-skelter finale and the game could have swung either way, but Garryowen just about clung on, landing a final try on 79 minutes to confirm their victory.

There was jubilation amongst their players and supporters. Tears were shed on the Nenagh side. It was an agonising defeat and Ormond will rue their poor start, which left them chasing the game from early on. That said, it turned out to be a sensational chase, and the squad should be proud of a valiant effort.

TEAMS - Garryowen: Daniel O’Connell (7), Seán Morrissey (8), Tom O’Brien (7), Pelle Van de Polder (8), Josh Boland (7), Marcus Joyce (9), Chulainn Williams (8); Jibril Koura (7), Harry Gleeson (capt, 8), Mark Fitzgerald (8), Daniel Magee (7), James Houlihan (7), Jonathan Byrne (8), Ben Gallagher (7), Adedamola Obasa (7).

Reps: Daniel O’Flaherty (7) for Magee (63), Tom Ironside Wickham (6) for Boland (72 inj), David Geoghegan (6) for Fitzgerald (72).

Nenagh Ormond: Sam Cusack (7), Alex Quinn (7), Brian O’Rourke (8, joint-capt), Brehon O’Donnell (7), Fionn Higgins (8), Darragh Gleeson (8), Tom Crofts (8); Richie Whelan (7), Frankie Butler (7), Ivan Struzia (7), Cillian Ryan (7), Fionn O’Meara (8), Paddy Dowling (7), Charlie Grace (7), Robbie Tynan (7, joint-capt)

Reps: Mason Cawley (7) for Quinn (HT), Keelan Dunne (7) for O’Donnell (55), Conor McGrath (NR) for Higgins (79), Ryan Gratton (NR) for Dowling (79).

Referee: Kevin Coffey.