10/05/2023

Lansdowne U15s v Coolmine U15s

Metropolitan Area Invitational Cup Final

12 – 7

In a match worthy of the title Metro Cup Final, Lansdowne Under 15s overcame a tenacious Coolmine 12-7 on the back pitch at the Aviva Stadium last night. Almost as if he called upon the Gods, Referee Ciaran O’Flynn had no sooner blown the opening note of the game when the heavens opened. This led to a scrappy first 15 minutes where both teams went toe to toe in order to get the upper hand. Lansdowne visited the opposition end early in the first five minutes only to spill the ball forward.

It was always going to be a game of Who Dares Wins and it was the big forwards from Coolmine broke through on about the 15 minute mark to score a try right under the posts which was easily converted to make the score 0-7. The remainder of the second half was a concoction of missed opportunities for Lansdowne intermixed with quite a few knock-ons and lineouts lost. However, their defence structure remained intact which kept Coolmine at bay with at least one try held up. Coolmine were beautiful to watch and were fabulous with ball in hand. They were a very well drilled outfit and kept the ball alive for 20 phases yet were not able to affect the score.

As half time came, the heavy rain abated just in time for the boys to get the hair dryer treatment from Forwards coach Dan Murphy and Backs coach Jack Matthews. Lansdowne kept knocking at the Coolmine door and time and again were turned away. One try being held up to the right of the posts by Coolmine following some hard carries by Daniel Hall Mehigan and Sean Rooney and another big carry by Louis Graby which just fell short of the line. Harry Martin was proving to be a menace with the ball in hand and a key tackler in defence.

Finally it was this attacking pressure which paid off and following a Coolmine yellow card, the boys went over for a classic forwards try scored by Louis Graby. This one easily converted to bring it 7 points a piece with about 15 mins left to play. Despite a couple of forays into the Lansdowne half, Coolmine were kept wondering for the rest of the half and it was with 5 mins left to play that George Waller caught a beautifully passed long ball almost from his shoelaces and sprinted for the Coolmine try line to score in the corner. Uncoverted 12-7.

The last 4 minutes of play was consistent attacking pressure from Coolmine and were showing definite signs of penetration but it was Harry Martin’s crunching tackle on their carrier that plugged their momentum. Coolmine weren’t done yet and scooped the ball up again, crossing the lansdowne try line but crucially being held up just a meter to the right of the posts. Ref Ciaran O’Flynn called full time much to the delight of the home crowd.

A well deserved victory for a special bunch of boys and coaches. Well done to Captain Christian Sinclair and his crew and to all the coaches and staff. Our thanks to Leinster Metro for a very well run competition, to U15 Metro coordinator Dara Donohue and to the Referee Ciaran O’Flynn and Assistant Ref John Kerr. We also thank Coolmine Rugby for a fantastic match that could have swung any which way. We wish you a restful summer and we’ll see you boys again next season.

We would like to thank all the supporters of all ages who came down to cheer on the boys.

Thanks to Michael O’Brien for all photos.

1. Sean Rooney 2. Donal Clarke 3. John Gorman 4. Daniel Hall Mehigan 5. Harry Martin 6. Alex Browne 7. Christian Sinclair (C) 8. Noah Gross 9. Aidan Wherley 10. Conor O’Dwyer

11. George Waller 12. Tom Clarke 13. Louis Graby 14. Gearoid Brady 15. Oisin O’Buachalla 16. Liam Browne Zarpellon 17. Ronan O’Connor 18. Arthur Collins 19. Charlie Lombard 20. Ollie Higgins*

Match Report – Brian Moran

*did not play