UBL 26th November 2016
Scorers: O'Hagan(1*Try), Moran(1*Try), Fritz(1*Try), McLean(3*Conv), (1*Penalty Try)
You would expect that a club that picked up a bonus point in the last play of the game and then learnt that their nearest challengers had slipped up would be in good spirits. But that was not he case at Hatrick Park where leaders Rainey Old Boys had beaten Kanturk 26-5. In all honesty, it was one of the worst games ever seen at the venue, an insipid affair that had the home spectators totally bemused. A repeat of this form at Bruff on Saturday will simply not do. While the struggling Cork side defended very well for most of the game, it must be said that they were allowed to get away with persistent infringements for too long. The home crowd had been baying for penalty tries long before the referee even brandished a yellow and when he eventually did award a penalty try, it came as a bit of a shock.
While there were few plusses to be taken from this display, Tim Barker is one to be singled out for his efforts to get Rainey going. He ploughed a lone furrow for much of the contest. Another plus was the early return to action of second-row Ronan McCusker who was expected to be sidelined for several weeks. His introduction early in the second half gave Rainey an extra dimension.
The cloud cover arrived bang on cue to allow this fixture to go ahead and with no wind to trouble the kickers conditions were quite good. Little went right for Rainey in the opening minutes as they persisted in going long at the lineout without winning a ball. McLean went close from near halfway, before tight-head O'Hagan managed to get over the line just when it looked as if they had wasted a clear overlap. McLean converted.
Losing far too much ball in contact and not committing enough forwards to the rucks and mauls, Rainey allowed Kanturk into the game and they spurned a close range penalty to go to the corner, a gamble which brought them a try on 25 minutes. Rainey showed a little more urgency after this, but made too many unforced errors to cause the visitors any concern. Wilson made a nice break from the back of a ruck, but was obviously watching a dodgy hamstring when he slowed down to seek support.
If the first half was a bit of a horror show, the second was not much better. Home hopes soared when Martin fed wing Moran who broke into the 22', but Harbinson couldn't hold the pass with the support arriving. A series of pick and goes took them close, but a turnover frustrated them again. More pressure saw them hammering away at the Kanturk line, but they just did not have the cohesion on the day to turn pressure into points.
Play was confined to the Kanturk 22' as the referee turned a blind eye to the Munstermen's policy of collapsing scrums and drifting offside. Penalties galore were awarded, with Rainey opting for scrums. No warnings appeared to be issued as play remained at the same spot for about ten minutes. It had become farcical before a player was eventually yellow carded. Another yellow was shown, but Rainey were unable to take advantage. Two penalty tries should have been awarded when Kanturk players in offside positions interfered with Rainey men queuing up to score.
Thoughts of a try-scoring bonus point had gone out of the head by the time the referee finally wilted after 65 minutes and awarded a penalty try. Barker never gave up trying to spark his colleagues into life, but nothing was happening and with six minutes remaining they still needed two tries. Hopes rose when centre McMurray made a half break from a scrum in midfield to find Moran who cut inside to score, McLean converting.
As the game moved into time added on, Kanturk reached the Rainey 22' for the first time in the second half, but Barker and Mullan led a final play drive towards the Kanturk line, where hooker Fritz dived over for a try that could prove to be a very valuable one later in the season.
TEAM : S.McLean, A.Donaghy, R.Andrew, J.McMurray, C.Moran, G.Martin, M.Wilson, K.Donaghy, G.Fritz, T.O'Hagan, T.Barker, P.Stewart, B.Mullan, A.Harbinson, D.Corrigan.
REPLACEMENTS : S.Rutledge, M.Caithness, J.Mc Cusker, R.McCusker, C.Laidler.