Buccaneers Go Third In AIL Division 2A Following Dolphin Drubbing

The Cork side were no match for the midlanders.

Buccaneers dished out a 60-7 drubbing to Dolphin in their Energia All-Ireland League Division 2A mismatch at Creggs RFC on Saturday.

This fixture was switched to the impressive 4G pitch at The Green as Dubarry Park was likely unplayable due to the incessant rain but any thoughts that Dolphin might have entertained about this surface (similar to Musgrave Park) being to their advantage were swiftly dashed by midlanders. The Pirates sunk the Corkonians without trace, a 24 points salvo in the opening quarter swamping Dolphin who simply had no answer to the pace, handling and power of Buccs.

Buccaneers made two changes, both in the pack, from the big win away to Rainey Old Boys. Martin Staunton returned at loosehead prop with Darragh Murray making his first start at lock. Weather conditions apart from a light breeze were relatively benign as Buccs kicked off and the floodgates opened very quickly. Sam Illo imposed himself on the visitors following a lineout on the left and his offload to Will Reilly saw the scrumhalf wrongfoot the cover for a smart finish inside two minutes. Shane Jennings was shunted into touch just short of the Dolphin line soon afterwards and then the midlanders opted for a close-in scrum following a deliberate knock-on. This led to a 6 th minute penalty which Michael Hanley slotted over to add to his earlier conversion. Nine minutes later, following a Buccs penalty to the touch on the right, the Pirates pack laid siege to the visitors’ line where Declan Adamson applied the finishing touch.

Almost from the restart, Josh O’Connor and Shane Layden did a neat wrap to make good ground before releasing Staunton and the veteran prop frolicked away like a Spring lamb to notch a third try for the Pirates. Hanley’s conversion gave Buccs a commanding 24-0 lead and Dolphin were already in massive trouble. To their credit they denied Buccs further scores before the interval, Rob Rearden making one crucial intercept to stem the tide while the Shannonsiders were culpable on a number of occasions when other scoring opportunities presented themselves. A knock-on, a forward pass and an offside all spoiled promising try chances in that second quarter.

Buccaneers were able to utilise their bench to good effect in the second half whilst regaining their momentum even though conditions now turned drizzly. A high tackle denied Darren Browne shortly after the change of ends and then Dolphin showed some grit to hold the Pirates out on their line. However, the inevitable bonus point try finally arrived when, after Evan Galvin and Illo had made good yardage, Graham Lynch displayed desire and neat footwork to unlock the Corkonians defence on 47

minutes. Three minutes later a cute diagonal chip over the cover by Reilly was collected by Luke Balsiger who showed calmness beyond his years to mark his AIL debut with a try in the right corner. Following a 55 th minute penalty to touch on the left, Buccs put in yet another impressive maul which Browne finished off for a try, the third touchdown in a row scored by a substitute.

The onslaught continued with the Athlone standard bearers making it a half dozen tries just past the hour mark. It followed another penalty to touch, this time to the right where Oisin McCormack won lineout ball. After a couple of flurries towards the visitors’ line, flanker McCormack’s strength and awareness earned him a try that put the Pirates 48-0 ahead. Although outfought and outthought, Dolphin continued to battle and their best spell of territory and possession was rewarded with Scott Rochford’s 67 th minute try converted by Daryl Foley that took the bare look off the scoreboard.

But there was to be no respite for the Munster men as Ciaran Booth caught a loose clearance by scrumhalf Foley on the home ten metre line and the No.8 thundered through from 60 metres for the try of the match. Philip Dowling was sin-binned as Dolphin desperately endeavoured to stem the tide. Staunton looked like notching his second try with a spritely break down the stand side and he probably would have scored had he kept steaming on. However, this break led to a close-in penalty for

Buccaneers and the Pirates skipper Galvin smart tap outfoxed Dolphin to grab a final minute try. Hanley brought his tally to 17 points with the conversion to complete the 60-7 victory.

The home side had 9 different scorers for their bevy of tries as they totalled 60 points for the second AIL game in succession and now move above Ballymena into third place on the league table. As in Magherafelt, this was an excellent, exciting and enterprising all-round team performance with every player making a valuable contribution. Illo, Galvin, Reilly and Ruaidhri Fallon were all contenders for the AUDI

ATHLONE Man of the Match accolade which was deservedly won by the evergreen Staunton. Dolphin have now conceded over 200 points in their four most recent AIL fixtures and are in dire danger of being dragged into the relegation dogfight.

Meanwhile the only disappointing note from Buccaneers perspective was the paltry attendance. Even allowing for the adverse weather, the Pirates entertaining and winning brand of rugby warrants better support.

Finally, the club gratefully acknowledges the co-operation of Creggs RFC in hosting this match are their impressive facility at The Green.

BUCCANEERS:- M.Hanley; S.Jennings, S.Layden, S.Mannion, J.O’Connor; R.Fallon, W.Reilly; M.Staunton, D.Adamson, S.Illo; D.Qualter, D.Murray; O.McCormack, E.Galvin (captain) and C.Booth. Replacements:- H.Balsiger (for Jennings, inj. 25 mins), G.Lynch (for O’Connor, 28 mins), D.Browne (for Adamson, h/t), T.Maree (for Murray, 53 mins), S.O’Connell (for Staunton, 53mins), J.O’Connor (for Reilly, 56 mins), W.Reilly (for Layden, 63 mins) and M.Staunton (for Illo, 65 mins).

DOLPHIN:- R.O’Herlihy; R.Rearden, S.Rochford, S.Scannell, T.Scannell; C.O’Shaughnessy, D.Foley; S.Lynch, C.Scott, D.Jennings; D.O’Mahony, B.O’Mahony; J.Vaughan, K.Allen (captain) and C.O’Herlihy. Replacements:- C.Fitzgerald (for S.Scannell, 24 mins), A.Denby (for C.O’Herlihy, 28 mins), P.Dowling (for Scott, 48 mins), J.Leahy (for Lynch, 48 mins), R.Foley (for R.O’Herlihy, 50 mins), S.Lynch (for Jennings, 61 mins) and C.O’Herlihy (for B.O’Mahony, 70 mins).

Referee:- Sam Holt (IRFU).

BUCCANEERS 29 NUI GALWAY 6

BUCCANEERS U-20’s completed the league section of the J.P.Fanagan Leinster Premier 3 with a 100% win record, accounting for NUI Galway by 29-6 at The Green, Creggs, on Sunday. Weather conditions were atrocious for this duel between the Connacht sides in this division and, understandably, the fare on offer was error ridden in the wind, wet and cold. Indeed the conditions got so bad early in the first half that the referee prudently halted play for a period. The Students had first benefit of the strong breeze and kept Buccs pinned back for long spells but managed to score just a pair of penalties by their scrumhalf.

The Athlone team replied with a super 11th minute try by Cian McCann who took off from the NUIG ten metre line and outpaced their defenders to score an excellent unconverted try. Halftime arrived with Buccs trailing by the minimum 6-5 and well placed to kick on following the change of ends.

This they did with an early second half try by Ben Daly. Then Kieran Egan made a massive impact following his introduction, powering through for a brace of tries in quick succession midway through the half. This assured Buccs of a bonus point and fullback Daly notched his second touchdown following a flying break down the right flank to complete the 29-6 winning margin. This confirms Buccaneers as winners of this section of the league and the top five teams now progress to the next section of this competition. McCann, Egan and Dara Fitzgerald were prominent in the forwards exchanges while Daly and Orrin Burgess looked pick of the backs in the testing conditions.

BUCCANEERS:- B.Daly; J.Finn, D.Colgan, T.Shine (captain), O.Burgess; M.Byrne, L.Duane; J.Connolly, E.Gallagher, L.Laoshvilli; F.McDonnell, C.McCann; D.Fitzgerald, G.Daly and K.Kiripati. Replacements:- K.Egan, C.Malone, C.Brill, J.Henson, R.Fallon and D.King.

BUCCS AWAY TO UL BOHS

Buccaneers head to Limerick for Round 14 of the Energia All-Ireland League and a Division 2A joust with UL Bohemian at the UL Arena on Saturday when the action kicks-off at 2.30 p.m.

Buccs accounted for the Red Robins 24-17 when the sides met early in the season at Dubarry Park. The Pirates raced into a 24-3 lead by half-time, a bonus point already gathered, with Saul O’Carroll scoring a brace of tries. They were very impressive in that opening half but changes at the interval by UL Bohs made the visitors much more competitive and the Limerick side salvaged a losing bonus point that did not look likely at the break. Buccaneers will be aware of the threat posed by cosmopolitan trio Conor Botha (South Africa), Ben Swindlehurst (New Zealand) and Mateo Ibanez (France). Vastly experienced Ian Condell is another who will give his all for the cause of UL Bohs while Paul Clancy, Teddy Rowesome, Darragh O’Gorman and Harry Byrne all have bags of potential.

So focus and application will be vital ingredients for the Pirates and complacency must be guarded against. UL Bohs secured a vital and morale boosting victory away to Rainey Old Boys last weekend which was welcome following a run of three defeats that left them languishing in 8 th position. The win at Magherafelt has lifted them up above Dolphin on the league table. Third placed Buccaneers are heading upwards again as a reward of their swash-buckling play since the New Year. The 4G surface at the UL Arena should suit their high energy, slick handling style and, hopefully, the Athlone side will have a near full-strength squad to select from. If that is the case, then the Pirates should take the spoils.

WOMENS CUP QUARTER-FINAL

BUCCANEERS WOMENS team have joined up with Galway Corinthians to participate in the Connacht Womens Cup this season. Their home quarter-final fixture v Westport fell victim to the weather last weekend and, at time of writing, the Pirates ladies are endeavouring to secure a rescheduled date for this match.

4G PITCH FOR DUBARRY PARK?

Anyone who has attended matches at Creggs RFC recently cannot but be impressed by the facilities there particularly their 4G pitch, the first by any rugby club in the province. Weather in recent years has high-lighted the need for such a facility at Dubarry Park, especially with the mushrooming number of underage players now participating in rugby at Buccaneers RFC. The club has just been awarded Sports Capital Funding towards a greatly needed 4G pitch.

This would be massively beneficial to the over 25 teams that Buccs now field regularly and would be particularly beneficial to facilitate training and matches for our Youths and Minis squads. The club is holding a special meeting in The Bounty on Wednesday, March 9 th at 8 p.m. to discuss this project. All are welcome to attend especially parents of our underage players who are the future of the club. Please make a note of the date and come along.

CONDOLENCES

Deepest sympathy is extended to the Grogan family, Glasson, on the passing of Moira. Her late husband Paddy and son Simon had long allegiances with the rugby club. May the Lord grant Moira eternal rest.