DYLAN DONNELLAN BAGGED his second brace of tries in the space of a week as table toppers Clontarf beat Shannon 33-3 on Thomond Park’s back pitch.
Clontarf's Dylan Donnellan [file photo]. Tom Maher / INPHO
Tom Maher / INPHO / INPHO
Just a point separates ‘Tarf and Terenure College at the top of Energia All-Ireland League Division 1A, with the Dublin rivals occupying the home semi-final berths with three rounds remaining.
Shannon, who remain in the bottom two, were only 12-3 behind at the break thanks to a Mike Cooke penalty. Ivan Soroka drove over late on to add to hooker Donnellan’s 12th-minute effort from a lineout maul.
Andy Wood’s men went up a gear on the restart with quick-fire scores from Ben Murphy and captain Matt D’Arcy, while ace finisher Donnellan had the final say in the 69th minute with his 14th try in 15 games.
Terenure College stretched clear of UCD in the second half, prevailing 32-10 in Belfield to make it a dozen wins for their league campaign so far.
Second-placed Terenure turned a 17-10 interval lead into a 22-point winning margin thanks to a trio of unconverted tries from Jordan Coghlan, Levi Vaughan (with his second of the game) and Colm de Buitléar.
After an early exchange of penalties between Michael Moloney and Caolan Dooley, a well-controlled lineout drive saw ‘Nure hooker Vaughan score the opening try in the 12th minute.
UCD fell further behind entering the second quarter, with the visitors capitalising on Ross Deegan’s yellow card for an off-the-ball incident involving Craig Adams. The latter crossed soon after, the beneficiary of a nice spread of passes across the backs.
Dooley’s well-struck conversion made it 17-3, but UCD hit back swiftly when David Ryan touched down from a lovely skip pass by Rob Gilsenan. Leinster Academy back rowers Sean O’Brien and James Culhane were both prominent in the build-up.
‘Nure had to come through a tricky period either side of half-time, losing both Adams, who was whistled up for a deliberate knock-on, and stand-in captain Mick Melia to the sin bin.
However, Sean Skehan’s charges took control of the scoreboard with two more tries approaching the hour mark. Influential number 8 Coghlan broke off a maul to go over in the left corner in the 51st minute.
The visitors’ lineout was the launchpad again for Vaughan to complete his brace, bagging the bonus point in the process. UCD lifted the tempo in response as ‘Nure lost replacement Stephen O’Neill to the bin for an off-the-ball tackle.
Crucially, Moloney missed touch from the penalty and after Andy Keating’s introduction, a dominant ‘Nure scrum landed the students back in their own 22. The maul was stopped on this occasion, but centre de Buitléar crashed over from a fizzing Alan Bennie pass.
Quicksilver try finishes from Stephen Lyons and Shay McCarthy saw Young Munster come from behind to defeat Lansdowne 15-10 on the Aviva Stadium’s back pitch.
Young Munster got the job done in the second half – having trailed to Jack O’Sullivan’s first-minute try – to remain fourth in the top flight table.
Lansdowne captain O’Sullivan charged down Jack Lyons’ attempted box kick and grounded the loose ball just to the right of the posts, allowing Stephen Madigan to turn it into a full seven points.
A prolonged bout of pressure had the Cookies hammering on the door, a try just eluding them before Evan Cusack split the posts to punish a ruck infringement from Connor O’Sullivan.
Lansdowne’s Peter Sullivan went close to scoring from his own kick through, but a subsequent penalty allowed Madigan to restore the seven-point gap (10-3).
The Cookies exerted huge pressure yet failed to force a try before half-time, despite Lansdowne losing both Dan Murphy (deliberate knock-on) and Ben Popplewell (high tackle) to the sin bin.
The hosts went down to 12 men after three successive scrum penalties ended with replacement prop Adam Boland binned. Much to Young Munster’s annoyance, they missed out on a likely penalty try as the scrums had to go uncontested and Lansdowne’s defence held firm out wide.
Into the second half, Lansdowne were back to 13 players when James Kenny partially blocked a pass with the try-line under threat, but Conor Hayes regathered the ball to send Lyons nipping over in the left corner for his try.
Out-half Cusack then showed his class, laying off a looping pass just as he was tackled by Clive Ross. It put McCarthy into space and he bounced off Sean Galvin’s tackle to score by the right corner flag.
Cusack nailed the touchline conversion to give his side a hard-earned five-point advantage, which ultimately proved enough despite some near misses at both ends.
Lansdowne did get back on the front foot late on, but Sean Rigney stole a vital lineout for the Cookies and they also won a turnover off a close-in scrum for the headquarters club.
Ballynahinch proved too strong for Dublin University, triumphing 36-15 with their six-try showing keeping them in contention for a top four finish.
‘Hinch still have five points to make up on fourth-placed Young Munster, but they remain in the hunt for a semi-final spot with three rounds left to play.
Josh Hanlon and Ethan Graham grabbed two tries each for the victors, while Ronan Quinn and Felix Campbell finished off what were only consolation scores for Trinity during the final quarter.
Hanlon connected with Ulster’s Cormac Izuchukwu at a second-minute lineout, the power generated by the ‘Hinch maul driving the hooker over to swiftly make it 5-0.
Luck was not on Trinity’s side when flanker Campbell embarked on a bulldozing run up into the hosts’ 22. From a subsequent lineout, he was stopped just short and lost the ball forward.
Aran Egan got them on the scoreboard with a well-struck penalty, punishing Izuchukwu who was slow to roll away, and the students were visibly growing in confidence.
Following a scrum penalty, Ruadhan Byron found a hole in ‘Hinch’s midfield defence, and it took an important tackle from Aaron Cairns to deny Gavin Jones a certain try.
Building from deep in the 24th minute, the County Down outfit used maul possession to invite Fergus Jemphrey forward. The Ireland Sevens international duly stepped inside two defenders on a brilliant burst downfield.
‘Hinch were clinical from only their second visit to the Trinity 22, George Saunderson and Mark Best both carrying well before Bradley Luney broke a tackle from Jones to score from a short Greg Hutley pass.
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Straight from the restart, ‘Hinch exploited some space out wide again, Best releasing Luney who connected with Cairns and the winger blazed up to the Trinity 22, drawing in Colm Hogan before passing back inside for full-back Graham to dive in behind the posts.
Following Hutley’s straightforward conversion which opened up a 17-3 lead, Zack McCall and Louis McDonough traded turnovers, the latter foiling a promising break that had Graham threatening out wide.
Ulster Academy scrum half Conor McKee came off the bench to bag the bonus point in the 53rd minute, putting the finishing touches to a neat move involving himself, Hanlon and Graham who did well to get the final offload away. Hutley converted.
Trinity wasted little time in responding, replacement Diarmuid McCormack getting his hands free in contact to superbly release Quinn for the left corner, reducing the arrears to 24-8.
Adam Craig’s side effectively slammed the door shut with their fifth try, though, as Izuchukwu offloaded off the deck for McKee to scamper through and feed Graham to complete his brace despite Quinn’s tap tackle. The extras were supplied by Hutley.
Two Trinity lineouts failed to work out, Luney stealing one and Hanlon gobbling up an overthrow, before a McKee 50:22 kick gave the Ulstermen the territorial edge.
Hanlon made it count, some crisp interplay between himself and Graham putting the hooker over in the left corner. Campbell closed out the scoring from a well-executed maul, ‘Hinch ending the game down to 14 men as Jemphrey was binned for a late challenge on Ted Walsh.
A maul during the clash of Ballynahinch vs Dublin University. Leah Scholes / INPHO
Leah Scholes / INPHO / INPHO
Cork Constitution staved off a second half fight-back from Garryowen as George Coomber’s 80th-minute penalty sealed a 29-21 victory at Dooradoyle.
Billy Scannell and Billy Crowley crossed to give Cork Con a 14-0 half-time lead, with Jonny Holland’s side looking to stay just six points behind second-placed Terenure in the table.
Jamie Shanahan cut through to open the Light Blues’ account in the 49th minute, only for Con’s Jack Kelleher, well supported by his back row colleague David Hyland, to barge over on the hour mark.
Colm Quilligan and Matt Sheehan sandwiched Niall Kenneally’s bonus point effort to get Garryowen within five points, yet full-back Coomber nailed his late kick to ensure Con returned to winning ways.
ENERGIA ALL-IRELAND LEAGUE – ROUND 15 RESULTS:
DIVISION 1A:
BALLYNAHINCH 36 DUBLIN UNIVERSITY 15, Ballymacarn Park
Scorers: Ballynahinch: Tries: Josh Hanlon 2, Bradley Luney, Ethan Graham 2, Conor McKee; Cons: Greg Hutley 3
Dublin University: Tries: Ronan Quinn, Felix Campbell; Con: Aran Egan; Pen: Aran Egan
HT: Ballynahinch 17 Dublin University 3
BALLYNAHINCH: Ethan Graham; Fergus Jemphrey, George Pringle, Mark Best, Aaron Cairns; Greg Hutley, Chris Gibson; George Saunderson, Josh Hanlon, Kyle McCall, Cormac Izuchukwu, Tom Martin, Matthew Rea, Zack McCall (capt), Bradley Luney.
Replacements: John Dickson, Nacho Cladera Crespo, James Simpson, Conor McKee, Ryan Wilson, Jack Milligan.
DUBLIN UNIVESITY: Colm Hogan; Liam McMahon, Louis McDonough, Gavin Jones, Ronan Quinn; Aran Egan, Ted Walsh; Jerry Cahir, Mark Nicholson, Thomas Connolly, Jack Kearney, Stephen Woods, Dan Barron, Felix Campbell, Ruadhan Byron.
Replacements: Zach Baird, Cole Kelly, Cuan Doyle, Diarmuid McCormack, Liam Nolan, Harry Colbert, James Dillon.
GARRYOWEN 21 CORK CONSTITUTION 29, Dooradoyle
Scorers: Garryowen: Tries: Jamie Shanahan, Colm Quilligan, Matt Sheehan; Cons: Tony Butler 3
Cork Constitution: Tries: Billy Scannell, Billy Crowley, Jack Kelleher, Niall Kenneally; Cons: George Coomber 3; Pen: George Coomber
HT: Garryowen 0 Cork Constitution 14
GARRYOWEN: Jamie Shanahan; Colm Quilligan, Matt Sheehan, Jack Delaney, Sam Hanrahan; Alex Wood, Ed Barry; Michael Veale, Max Clein, Michael Mbaud, Oisin Cooke, Kevin Seymour, Des Fitzgerald, Dean Fanning, Sean Rennison (capt).
Replacements: Ben O’Sullivan, Cian Hurley, Tim Ferguson, Evan Maher, Tony Butler, Patrick Naughton.
CORK CONSTITUTION: George Coomber; Daniel Hurley, Greg Higgins, Harry O’Riordan, Billy Crowley; Niall Kenneally, Gerry Hurley; Alessandro Heaney, Billy Scannell, Luke Masters, Sean Duffy, Jack Kelleher, Ross O’Neill, James Murphy, David Hyland.
Replacements: Gordon Good, Brendan Quinlan, Eoin Quilter, Mark Stafford, Louis Kahn, Michael Hand.
LANSDOWNE 10 YOUNG MUNSTER 15, Aviva Stadium back pitch
Scorers: Lansdowne: Try: Jack O’Sullivan; Con: Stephen Madigan; Pen: Stephen Madigan
Young Munster: Tries: Stephen Lyons, Shay McCarthy; Con: Evan Cusack; Pen: Evan Cusack
HT: Lansdowne 10 Young Munster 3
LANSDOWNE: Daniel McEvoy; Peter Sullivan, Cillian Redmond, Connor O’Sullivan, Sean Galvin; Stephen Madigan, James Kenny; Ben Popplewell, Tadgh McElroy, Temi Lasisi, Jack Dwan, Ruairi Clarke, Clive Ross, Jack O’Sullivan (capt), Dan Murphy.
Replacements: Jamie Kavanagh, Adam Boland, James Doyle, Darragh Murphy, Jack Connolly, Peter Hastie.
YOUNG MUNSTER: Conor Hayes; Shay McCarthy, Fionn Gibbons, Luke Fitzgerald, Stephen Lyons; Evan Cusack, Jack Lyons; David Begley, George Jacobs, Conor Bartley, Sean Rigney, Alan Kennedy (capt), Bailey Faloon, Ronan O’Sullivan, John Foley.
Replacements: Mark O’Mara, Paulo Leleisiuao, James Horrigan, Conor Moloney, Donnchadh O’Callaghan, Harry Fleming.
SHANNON 3 CLONTARF 33, Thomond Park back pitch
Scorers: Shannon: Pen: Mike Cooke
Clontarf: Tries: Dylan Donnellan 2, Ivan Soroka, Ben Murphy, Matt D’Arcy; Cons: Tadhg Bird 4
HT: Shannon 3 Clontarf 12
SHANNON: Jamie McGarry; Cian O’Halloran, Harry Long, Alan Flannery, Dan Hurley; Mike Cooke, John O’Sullivan; Conor Glynn, Jordan Prenderville, Luke Rigney, Sean McCarthy (capt), David Maher, Lee Nicholas, Colm Heffernan, Daniel Okeke.
CLONTARF: Aitzol Arenzana King; Seni Reilly Ashiru, Mikey McGiff, Matt D’Arcy (capt), Cian O’Donoghue; Tadhg Bird, Ben Murphy; Ivan Soroka, Dylan Donnellan, Ben Griffin, Ed Kelly, Fionn Gilbert, Mick Kearney, JJ O’Dea, Tony Ryan.
Replacements: Cathal O’Flynn, Darragh Bolger, Paul Deeny, Angus Lloyd, Jimmy Hawkshaw, Michael Fitzpatrick.
UCD 10 TERENURE COLLEGE 32, UCD Bowl
Scorers: UCD: Try: David Ryan; Con: Michael Moloney; Pen: Michael Moloney
Terenure College: Tries: Levi Vaughan 2, Craig Adams, Jordan Coghlan, Colm de Buitléar; Cons: Caolan Dooley 2; Pen: Caolan Dooley
HT: UCD 10 Terenure College 17
UCD: Harry Donnelly; Ross Deegan, David Ryan, Ben Brownlee, Alex O’Grady; Michael Moloney, Rob Gilsenan; Chris Hennessy, Bobby Sheehan (capt), Evin Coyle, Bill Burns, Gerry Hill, James Culhane, Oisin Spain, Sean O’Brien.
Replacements: Ben Porter, Hugo O’Malley, Ryan McMahon, Simon Burke, Thomas Quinn, Jeff Williams.
TERENURE COLLEGE: Adam La Grue; Caolan Dooley, Colm de Buitléar, Peter Sylvester, Craig Adams; Callum Smith, Alan Bennie; Campbell Classon, Levi Vaughan, Adam Tuite, Matthew Caffrey, Mick Melia (capt), Adam Melia, Luke Clohessy, Jordan Coghlan.
Replacements: Robbie Smyth, Andy Keating, Mike Murphy, Conall Boomer, James Thornton, Stephen O’Neill.
DIVISION 1B:
CITY OF ARMAGH 23 ST. MARY’S COLLEGE 20, Palace Grounds
Scorers: City of Armagh: Tries: John Glasgow, Ryan O’Neill; Cons: Michael McDonald 2; Pens: Michael McDonald 3
St. Mary’s College: Tries: Richie Fahy, Richie Halpin; Cons: Conor Hickey 2; Pens: Conor Hickey 2
HT: City of Armagh 10 St. Mary’s College 13
CITY OF ARMAGH: Sam Cunningham; Andrew Willis, Tim McNiece (capt), Ross Taylor, Glen Faloon; Evin Crummie, Michael McDonald; Dylan Poyntz, Jonny Morton, Paul Mullen, Josh McKinley, John Glasgow, Nigel Simpson, Ryan O’Neill, James Crummie.
Replacements: Jack Treanor, Philip Fletcher, Eoin O’Hagan, Josh Cunningham, Ryan Purvis, Dylan Nelson.
ST. MARY’S COLLEGE: Mark Fogarty; Hugo Conway, Conor Hickey, Ryan O’Loughlin, Max Svejdar; Aaron O’Neill, Richie Fahy; Adam Mulvihill, Richie Halpin, Mick McCormack, Peter Starrett, Daniel Leane, Niall Hurley, Ethan Baxter, Ronan Watters (capt).
Replacements: Daniel Lyons, Jack Reidy Walsh, Liam Corcoran, Ian Wickham, Adam McEvoy, Ruairi Shields, Andrew Walsh, Senan Phelan.
HIGHFIELD 21 OLD WESLEY 16, Woodleigh Park
Scorers: Highfield: Tries: Ben Murphy, Travis Coomey; Con: James Taylor; Pens: James Taylor 3
Old Wesley: Tries: Nathan Randles, Tommy O’Callaghan; Pens: Eoin Monahan 2
HT: Highfield 8 Old Wesley 8
HIGHFIELD: Cian Bohane; Ben Murphy, Liam McCarthy, Mark Dorgan, Colin O’Neill; James Taylor, Richard Cassidy; Cillian Buckley, Rob Murphy, Daragh Fitzgerald, Dave O’Connell (capt), Eoin Keating, Mark Fitzgibbon, Amhlaoibh Porter, Miah Cronin.
Replacements: Travis Coomey, Ian McCarthy, John O’Callaghan, Aidan Keane, Sean Quaid, Gavin O’Leary.
OLD WESLEY: Alex Molloy; Nathan Randles, James O’Donovan, Eoin Deegan, Tommy O’Callaghan; Eoin Monahan, Keith Kavanagh; Harry Noonan, Howard Noonan, Cronan Gleeson, David Motyer, Iain McGann (capt), Will Fay, Reuben Pim, Sam Pim.
Replacements: Finn Tierney, Sam Kenny, Dom Maclean, Josh O’Hare, Josh Miller, David Poff.
MALONE 32 NAAS 17, Gibson Park
Scorers: Malone: Tries: Angus Curtis 3, David McMaster; Cons: Angus Curtis 2, Yasser Omar; Pens: David McMaster, Yasser Omar
Naas: Tries: Will O’Brien, Charlie Sheridan; Cons: Bryan Croke, Connor Halpenny; Pen: Bryan Croke
HT: Malone 25 Naas 3
MALONE: Aaron Sexton; Andrew Bryans, Ben Gibson, Nathan Brown, David McMaster; Angus Curtis, Shane Kelly; Ben Halliday, Sam Green, Ricky Greenwood, Neill Alcorn, Adam McNamee, Daryl Maxwell, Dave Cave (capt), Michael Crothers.
NAAS: Fionn Higgins; Andrew Osborne, Charlie Sheridan, Henry Smith, Donal Conroy; Bryan Croke, Oscar Cawley; Adam Coyle, Conor Doyle, Stephen Lackey, James O’Loughlin, David Benn, Cillian Dempsey, Will O’Brien, Ryan Casey.
Replacements: Nato Kiripati, Jack Coyle, Paul Monahan, Eoin Walsh, Connor Halpenny, Craig Ronaldson.
OLD BELVEDERE 34 BUCCANEERS 7, Ollie Campbell Park
Scorers: Old Belvedere: Tries: James Bollard, Tom Mulcair 2, Jayden Beckett, Briain Leonard; Cons: Mick O’Kennedy 2, David Wilkinson; Pen: Mick O’Kennedy
Buccaneers: Try: Stephen Mannion; Con: Harry West
HT: Old Belvedere 15 Buccaneers 0
OLD BELVEDERE: Joe White; Ariel Robles, Jayden Beckett, Mick O’Kennedy, Luke McDermott; David Wilkinson, Peter O’Beirne; James Bollard (capt), Calum Dowling, Ronan Foxe, Fionn McWey, Connor Owende, Jack Breen, Tom Mulcair, Kale Thatcher.
Replacements: Joe Horan, Hugh Flood, James Ruddy, Jed Tormey, Briain Leonard, Mark Galvin.
BUCCANEERS: Michael Hanley; Josh O’Connor, Daniel Hawkshaw, Stephen Mannion, Ross Murphy Sweeney; Harry West, Will Reilly; Matthew Burke, Steveni Lombard, Martin Staunton (capt), Ruairi Byrne, Danny Qualter, Ryan O’Meara, Sean O’Connell, Ciaran Booth.
Replacements: Oisin Dolan, James Kelly, Fionn McDonnell, Frankie Hopkins, Tom Shine, Adam O’Carroll.
UCC 46 BANBRIDGE 34, the Mardyke
Scorers: UCC: Tries: Louis Bruce 2, Matt O’Callaghan, Mark Bissessar, Sean Condon 2; Cons: Louis Bruce 5; Pens: Louis Bruce 2
Banbridge: Tries: Robin Sinton, Aaron Kennedy, Adam Doherty, Peter Cromie; Cons: James Humphreys 4; Pens: James Humphreys 2
HT: UCC 23 Banbridge 13
UCC: Louis Bruce (capt); Sean Condon, Darragh French, Daniel Squires, Matt O’Callaghan; Cian Whooley, Ignasi Rodriguez; Rory Duggan, Scott Buckley, Daniel McCarthy, Aiden Brien, Mark Bissessar, Sam O’Sullivan, Jacob Sheahan, Patrick McBarron.
Replacements: Luke McAuliffe, Stewart Lynch, David O’Halloran, Conor Booth, Ollie Young, Johnny Murphy.
BANBRIDGE: Adam Doherty; James Buller, Andrew Morrison, Josh Cromie, Jamie Mullan; James Humphreys, Aaron Kennedy; Josh Chambers, Peter Cromie (capt), Michael Cromie, Alex Thompson, Matthew Laird, Max Lyttle, Robin Sinton, Greg Jones.
Replacements: John Wilson, Ryan Emerson, Martin Vorster, Neil Kilpatrick, Macauley Little, Rob Lyttle.
DIVISION 2A:
Blackrock College 27 Queen’s University 28, Stradbrook
MU Barnhall 21 Cashel 17, Parsonstown
Navan 21 Old Crescent 22, Balreask Old
Nenagh Ormond 34 Ballymena 24, New Ormond Park
UL Bohemians 27 Dolphin 24, Annacotty
DIVISION 2B:
Belfast Harlequins 24 Greystones 12, Deramore Park
Galway Corinthians 7 Wanderers 20, Corinthian Park
Dungannon 35 Enniscorthy 26, Stevenson Park
Malahide 27 Rainey Old Boys 20, Estuary Road
Sligo 36 Galwegians 22, Hamilton Park
DIVISION 2C:
Bruff 15 Bangor 13, Kilballyowen Park
Clonmel 10 Skerries 18, Ardgaoithe
Instonians 56 Ballina 7, Shaw’s Bridge
Midleton 24 Tullamore 17, Towns Park
Sunday’s Well 49 Omagh Academicals 15, Musgrave Park
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Donnellan bags another brace as leaders Clontarf inflict 30-point defeat on Shannon
DYLAN DONNELLAN BAGGED his second brace of tries in the space of a week as table toppers Clontarf beat Shannon 33-3 on Thomond Park’s back pitch.
Just a point separates ‘Tarf and Terenure College at the top of Energia All-Ireland League Division 1A, with the Dublin rivals occupying the home semi-final berths with three rounds remaining.
Shannon, who remain in the bottom two, were only 12-3 behind at the break thanks to a Mike Cooke penalty. Ivan Soroka drove over late on to add to hooker Donnellan’s 12th-minute effort from a lineout maul.
Andy Wood’s men went up a gear on the restart with quick-fire scores from Ben Murphy and captain Matt D’Arcy, while ace finisher Donnellan had the final say in the 69th minute with his 14th try in 15 games.
Terenure College stretched clear of UCD in the second half, prevailing 32-10 in Belfield to make it a dozen wins for their league campaign so far.
Second-placed Terenure turned a 17-10 interval lead into a 22-point winning margin thanks to a trio of unconverted tries from Jordan Coghlan, Levi Vaughan (with his second of the game) and Colm de Buitléar.
After an early exchange of penalties between Michael Moloney and Caolan Dooley, a well-controlled lineout drive saw ‘Nure hooker Vaughan score the opening try in the 12th minute.
UCD fell further behind entering the second quarter, with the visitors capitalising on Ross Deegan’s yellow card for an off-the-ball incident involving Craig Adams. The latter crossed soon after, the beneficiary of a nice spread of passes across the backs.
Dooley’s well-struck conversion made it 17-3, but UCD hit back swiftly when David Ryan touched down from a lovely skip pass by Rob Gilsenan. Leinster Academy back rowers Sean O’Brien and James Culhane were both prominent in the build-up.
‘Nure had to come through a tricky period either side of half-time, losing both Adams, who was whistled up for a deliberate knock-on, and stand-in captain Mick Melia to the sin bin.
However, Sean Skehan’s charges took control of the scoreboard with two more tries approaching the hour mark. Influential number 8 Coghlan broke off a maul to go over in the left corner in the 51st minute.
The visitors’ lineout was the launchpad again for Vaughan to complete his brace, bagging the bonus point in the process. UCD lifted the tempo in response as ‘Nure lost replacement Stephen O’Neill to the bin for an off-the-ball tackle.
Crucially, Moloney missed touch from the penalty and after Andy Keating’s introduction, a dominant ‘Nure scrum landed the students back in their own 22. The maul was stopped on this occasion, but centre de Buitléar crashed over from a fizzing Alan Bennie pass.
Quicksilver try finishes from Stephen Lyons and Shay McCarthy saw Young Munster come from behind to defeat Lansdowne 15-10 on the Aviva Stadium’s back pitch.
Young Munster got the job done in the second half – having trailed to Jack O’Sullivan’s first-minute try – to remain fourth in the top flight table.
Lansdowne captain O’Sullivan charged down Jack Lyons’ attempted box kick and grounded the loose ball just to the right of the posts, allowing Stephen Madigan to turn it into a full seven points.
A prolonged bout of pressure had the Cookies hammering on the door, a try just eluding them before Evan Cusack split the posts to punish a ruck infringement from Connor O’Sullivan.
Lansdowne’s Peter Sullivan went close to scoring from his own kick through, but a subsequent penalty allowed Madigan to restore the seven-point gap (10-3).
The Cookies exerted huge pressure yet failed to force a try before half-time, despite Lansdowne losing both Dan Murphy (deliberate knock-on) and Ben Popplewell (high tackle) to the sin bin.
The hosts went down to 12 men after three successive scrum penalties ended with replacement prop Adam Boland binned. Much to Young Munster’s annoyance, they missed out on a likely penalty try as the scrums had to go uncontested and Lansdowne’s defence held firm out wide.
Into the second half, Lansdowne were back to 13 players when James Kenny partially blocked a pass with the try-line under threat, but Conor Hayes regathered the ball to send Lyons nipping over in the left corner for his try.
Out-half Cusack then showed his class, laying off a looping pass just as he was tackled by Clive Ross. It put McCarthy into space and he bounced off Sean Galvin’s tackle to score by the right corner flag.
Cusack nailed the touchline conversion to give his side a hard-earned five-point advantage, which ultimately proved enough despite some near misses at both ends.
Lansdowne did get back on the front foot late on, but Sean Rigney stole a vital lineout for the Cookies and they also won a turnover off a close-in scrum for the headquarters club.
Ballynahinch proved too strong for Dublin University, triumphing 36-15 with their six-try showing keeping them in contention for a top four finish.
‘Hinch still have five points to make up on fourth-placed Young Munster, but they remain in the hunt for a semi-final spot with three rounds left to play.
Josh Hanlon and Ethan Graham grabbed two tries each for the victors, while Ronan Quinn and Felix Campbell finished off what were only consolation scores for Trinity during the final quarter.
Hanlon connected with Ulster’s Cormac Izuchukwu at a second-minute lineout, the power generated by the ‘Hinch maul driving the hooker over to swiftly make it 5-0.
Luck was not on Trinity’s side when flanker Campbell embarked on a bulldozing run up into the hosts’ 22. From a subsequent lineout, he was stopped just short and lost the ball forward.
Aran Egan got them on the scoreboard with a well-struck penalty, punishing Izuchukwu who was slow to roll away, and the students were visibly growing in confidence.
Following a scrum penalty, Ruadhan Byron found a hole in ‘Hinch’s midfield defence, and it took an important tackle from Aaron Cairns to deny Gavin Jones a certain try.
Building from deep in the 24th minute, the County Down outfit used maul possession to invite Fergus Jemphrey forward. The Ireland Sevens international duly stepped inside two defenders on a brilliant burst downfield.
‘Hinch were clinical from only their second visit to the Trinity 22, George Saunderson and Mark Best both carrying well before Bradley Luney broke a tackle from Jones to score from a short Greg Hutley pass.
Straight from the restart, ‘Hinch exploited some space out wide again, Best releasing Luney who connected with Cairns and the winger blazed up to the Trinity 22, drawing in Colm Hogan before passing back inside for full-back Graham to dive in behind the posts.
Following Hutley’s straightforward conversion which opened up a 17-3 lead, Zack McCall and Louis McDonough traded turnovers, the latter foiling a promising break that had Graham threatening out wide.
Ulster Academy scrum half Conor McKee came off the bench to bag the bonus point in the 53rd minute, putting the finishing touches to a neat move involving himself, Hanlon and Graham who did well to get the final offload away. Hutley converted.
Trinity wasted little time in responding, replacement Diarmuid McCormack getting his hands free in contact to superbly release Quinn for the left corner, reducing the arrears to 24-8.
Adam Craig’s side effectively slammed the door shut with their fifth try, though, as Izuchukwu offloaded off the deck for McKee to scamper through and feed Graham to complete his brace despite Quinn’s tap tackle. The extras were supplied by Hutley.
Two Trinity lineouts failed to work out, Luney stealing one and Hanlon gobbling up an overthrow, before a McKee 50:22 kick gave the Ulstermen the territorial edge.
Hanlon made it count, some crisp interplay between himself and Graham putting the hooker over in the left corner. Campbell closed out the scoring from a well-executed maul, ‘Hinch ending the game down to 14 men as Jemphrey was binned for a late challenge on Ted Walsh.
Cork Constitution staved off a second half fight-back from Garryowen as George Coomber’s 80th-minute penalty sealed a 29-21 victory at Dooradoyle.
Billy Scannell and Billy Crowley crossed to give Cork Con a 14-0 half-time lead, with Jonny Holland’s side looking to stay just six points behind second-placed Terenure in the table.
Jamie Shanahan cut through to open the Light Blues’ account in the 49th minute, only for Con’s Jack Kelleher, well supported by his back row colleague David Hyland, to barge over on the hour mark.
Colm Quilligan and Matt Sheehan sandwiched Niall Kenneally’s bonus point effort to get Garryowen within five points, yet full-back Coomber nailed his late kick to ensure Con returned to winning ways.
ENERGIA ALL-IRELAND LEAGUE – ROUND 15 RESULTS:
DIVISION 1A:
BALLYNAHINCH 36 DUBLIN UNIVERSITY 15, Ballymacarn Park
Scorers: Ballynahinch: Tries: Josh Hanlon 2, Bradley Luney, Ethan Graham 2, Conor McKee; Cons: Greg Hutley 3
Dublin University: Tries: Ronan Quinn, Felix Campbell; Con: Aran Egan; Pen: Aran Egan
HT: Ballynahinch 17 Dublin University 3
BALLYNAHINCH: Ethan Graham; Fergus Jemphrey, George Pringle, Mark Best, Aaron Cairns; Greg Hutley, Chris Gibson; George Saunderson, Josh Hanlon, Kyle McCall, Cormac Izuchukwu, Tom Martin, Matthew Rea, Zack McCall (capt), Bradley Luney.
Replacements: John Dickson, Nacho Cladera Crespo, James Simpson, Conor McKee, Ryan Wilson, Jack Milligan.
DUBLIN UNIVESITY: Colm Hogan; Liam McMahon, Louis McDonough, Gavin Jones, Ronan Quinn; Aran Egan, Ted Walsh; Jerry Cahir, Mark Nicholson, Thomas Connolly, Jack Kearney, Stephen Woods, Dan Barron, Felix Campbell, Ruadhan Byron.
Replacements: Zach Baird, Cole Kelly, Cuan Doyle, Diarmuid McCormack, Liam Nolan, Harry Colbert, James Dillon.
GARRYOWEN 21 CORK CONSTITUTION 29, Dooradoyle
Scorers: Garryowen: Tries: Jamie Shanahan, Colm Quilligan, Matt Sheehan; Cons: Tony Butler 3
Cork Constitution: Tries: Billy Scannell, Billy Crowley, Jack Kelleher, Niall Kenneally; Cons: George Coomber 3; Pen: George Coomber
HT: Garryowen 0 Cork Constitution 14
GARRYOWEN: Jamie Shanahan; Colm Quilligan, Matt Sheehan, Jack Delaney, Sam Hanrahan; Alex Wood, Ed Barry; Michael Veale, Max Clein, Michael Mbaud, Oisin Cooke, Kevin Seymour, Des Fitzgerald, Dean Fanning, Sean Rennison (capt).
Replacements: Ben O’Sullivan, Cian Hurley, Tim Ferguson, Evan Maher, Tony Butler, Patrick Naughton.
CORK CONSTITUTION: George Coomber; Daniel Hurley, Greg Higgins, Harry O’Riordan, Billy Crowley; Niall Kenneally, Gerry Hurley; Alessandro Heaney, Billy Scannell, Luke Masters, Sean Duffy, Jack Kelleher, Ross O’Neill, James Murphy, David Hyland.
Replacements: Gordon Good, Brendan Quinlan, Eoin Quilter, Mark Stafford, Louis Kahn, Michael Hand.
LANSDOWNE 10 YOUNG MUNSTER 15, Aviva Stadium back pitch
Scorers: Lansdowne: Try: Jack O’Sullivan; Con: Stephen Madigan; Pen: Stephen Madigan
Young Munster: Tries: Stephen Lyons, Shay McCarthy; Con: Evan Cusack; Pen: Evan Cusack
HT: Lansdowne 10 Young Munster 3
LANSDOWNE: Daniel McEvoy; Peter Sullivan, Cillian Redmond, Connor O’Sullivan, Sean Galvin; Stephen Madigan, James Kenny; Ben Popplewell, Tadgh McElroy, Temi Lasisi, Jack Dwan, Ruairi Clarke, Clive Ross, Jack O’Sullivan (capt), Dan Murphy.
Replacements: Jamie Kavanagh, Adam Boland, James Doyle, Darragh Murphy, Jack Connolly, Peter Hastie.
YOUNG MUNSTER: Conor Hayes; Shay McCarthy, Fionn Gibbons, Luke Fitzgerald, Stephen Lyons; Evan Cusack, Jack Lyons; David Begley, George Jacobs, Conor Bartley, Sean Rigney, Alan Kennedy (capt), Bailey Faloon, Ronan O’Sullivan, John Foley.
Replacements: Mark O’Mara, Paulo Leleisiuao, James Horrigan, Conor Moloney, Donnchadh O’Callaghan, Harry Fleming.
SHANNON 3 CLONTARF 33, Thomond Park back pitch
Scorers: Shannon: Pen: Mike Cooke
Clontarf: Tries: Dylan Donnellan 2, Ivan Soroka, Ben Murphy, Matt D’Arcy; Cons: Tadhg Bird 4
HT: Shannon 3 Clontarf 12
SHANNON: Jamie McGarry; Cian O’Halloran, Harry Long, Alan Flannery, Dan Hurley; Mike Cooke, John O’Sullivan; Conor Glynn, Jordan Prenderville, Luke Rigney, Sean McCarthy (capt), David Maher, Lee Nicholas, Colm Heffernan, Daniel Okeke.
Replacements: Kelvin Brown, Shane Carew, Cathal Hynes, Odhran Ring, Jack O’Donnell, Killian Dineen.
CLONTARF: Aitzol Arenzana King; Seni Reilly Ashiru, Mikey McGiff, Matt D’Arcy (capt), Cian O’Donoghue; Tadhg Bird, Ben Murphy; Ivan Soroka, Dylan Donnellan, Ben Griffin, Ed Kelly, Fionn Gilbert, Mick Kearney, JJ O’Dea, Tony Ryan.
Replacements: Cathal O’Flynn, Darragh Bolger, Paul Deeny, Angus Lloyd, Jimmy Hawkshaw, Michael Fitzpatrick.
UCD 10 TERENURE COLLEGE 32, UCD Bowl
Scorers: UCD: Try: David Ryan; Con: Michael Moloney; Pen: Michael Moloney
Terenure College: Tries: Levi Vaughan 2, Craig Adams, Jordan Coghlan, Colm de Buitléar; Cons: Caolan Dooley 2; Pen: Caolan Dooley
HT: UCD 10 Terenure College 17
UCD: Harry Donnelly; Ross Deegan, David Ryan, Ben Brownlee, Alex O’Grady; Michael Moloney, Rob Gilsenan; Chris Hennessy, Bobby Sheehan (capt), Evin Coyle, Bill Burns, Gerry Hill, James Culhane, Oisin Spain, Sean O’Brien.
Replacements: Ben Porter, Hugo O’Malley, Ryan McMahon, Simon Burke, Thomas Quinn, Jeff Williams.
TERENURE COLLEGE: Adam La Grue; Caolan Dooley, Colm de Buitléar, Peter Sylvester, Craig Adams; Callum Smith, Alan Bennie; Campbell Classon, Levi Vaughan, Adam Tuite, Matthew Caffrey, Mick Melia (capt), Adam Melia, Luke Clohessy, Jordan Coghlan.
Replacements: Robbie Smyth, Andy Keating, Mike Murphy, Conall Boomer, James Thornton, Stephen O’Neill.
DIVISION 1B:
CITY OF ARMAGH 23 ST. MARY’S COLLEGE 20, Palace Grounds
Scorers: City of Armagh: Tries: John Glasgow, Ryan O’Neill; Cons: Michael McDonald 2; Pens: Michael McDonald 3
St. Mary’s College: Tries: Richie Fahy, Richie Halpin; Cons: Conor Hickey 2; Pens: Conor Hickey 2
HT: City of Armagh 10 St. Mary’s College 13
CITY OF ARMAGH: Sam Cunningham; Andrew Willis, Tim McNiece (capt), Ross Taylor, Glen Faloon; Evin Crummie, Michael McDonald; Dylan Poyntz, Jonny Morton, Paul Mullen, Josh McKinley, John Glasgow, Nigel Simpson, Ryan O’Neill, James Crummie.
Replacements: Jack Treanor, Philip Fletcher, Eoin O’Hagan, Josh Cunningham, Ryan Purvis, Dylan Nelson.
ST. MARY’S COLLEGE: Mark Fogarty; Hugo Conway, Conor Hickey, Ryan O’Loughlin, Max Svejdar; Aaron O’Neill, Richie Fahy; Adam Mulvihill, Richie Halpin, Mick McCormack, Peter Starrett, Daniel Leane, Niall Hurley, Ethan Baxter, Ronan Watters (capt).
Replacements: Daniel Lyons, Jack Reidy Walsh, Liam Corcoran, Ian Wickham, Adam McEvoy, Ruairi Shields, Andrew Walsh, Senan Phelan.
HIGHFIELD 21 OLD WESLEY 16, Woodleigh Park
Scorers: Highfield: Tries: Ben Murphy, Travis Coomey; Con: James Taylor; Pens: James Taylor 3
Old Wesley: Tries: Nathan Randles, Tommy O’Callaghan; Pens: Eoin Monahan 2
HT: Highfield 8 Old Wesley 8
HIGHFIELD: Cian Bohane; Ben Murphy, Liam McCarthy, Mark Dorgan, Colin O’Neill; James Taylor, Richard Cassidy; Cillian Buckley, Rob Murphy, Daragh Fitzgerald, Dave O’Connell (capt), Eoin Keating, Mark Fitzgibbon, Amhlaoibh Porter, Miah Cronin.
Replacements: Travis Coomey, Ian McCarthy, John O’Callaghan, Aidan Keane, Sean Quaid, Gavin O’Leary.
OLD WESLEY: Alex Molloy; Nathan Randles, James O’Donovan, Eoin Deegan, Tommy O’Callaghan; Eoin Monahan, Keith Kavanagh; Harry Noonan, Howard Noonan, Cronan Gleeson, David Motyer, Iain McGann (capt), Will Fay, Reuben Pim, Sam Pim.
Replacements: Finn Tierney, Sam Kenny, Dom Maclean, Josh O’Hare, Josh Miller, David Poff.
MALONE 32 NAAS 17, Gibson Park
Scorers: Malone: Tries: Angus Curtis 3, David McMaster; Cons: Angus Curtis 2, Yasser Omar; Pens: David McMaster, Yasser Omar
Naas: Tries: Will O’Brien, Charlie Sheridan; Cons: Bryan Croke, Connor Halpenny; Pen: Bryan Croke
HT: Malone 25 Naas 3
MALONE: Aaron Sexton; Andrew Bryans, Ben Gibson, Nathan Brown, David McMaster; Angus Curtis, Shane Kelly; Ben Halliday, Sam Green, Ricky Greenwood, Neill Alcorn, Adam McNamee, Daryl Maxwell, Dave Cave (capt), Michael Crothers.
Replacements: Lawson Porter, Cory Tipping, Stuart Dodington, Kack McMurtry, Yasser Omar, Rory Campbell.
NAAS: Fionn Higgins; Andrew Osborne, Charlie Sheridan, Henry Smith, Donal Conroy; Bryan Croke, Oscar Cawley; Adam Coyle, Conor Doyle, Stephen Lackey, James O’Loughlin, David Benn, Cillian Dempsey, Will O’Brien, Ryan Casey.
Replacements: Nato Kiripati, Jack Coyle, Paul Monahan, Eoin Walsh, Connor Halpenny, Craig Ronaldson.
OLD BELVEDERE 34 BUCCANEERS 7, Ollie Campbell Park
Scorers: Old Belvedere: Tries: James Bollard, Tom Mulcair 2, Jayden Beckett, Briain Leonard; Cons: Mick O’Kennedy 2, David Wilkinson; Pen: Mick O’Kennedy
Buccaneers: Try: Stephen Mannion; Con: Harry West
HT: Old Belvedere 15 Buccaneers 0
OLD BELVEDERE: Joe White; Ariel Robles, Jayden Beckett, Mick O’Kennedy, Luke McDermott; David Wilkinson, Peter O’Beirne; James Bollard (capt), Calum Dowling, Ronan Foxe, Fionn McWey, Connor Owende, Jack Breen, Tom Mulcair, Kale Thatcher.
Replacements: Joe Horan, Hugh Flood, James Ruddy, Jed Tormey, Briain Leonard, Mark Galvin.
BUCCANEERS: Michael Hanley; Josh O’Connor, Daniel Hawkshaw, Stephen Mannion, Ross Murphy Sweeney; Harry West, Will Reilly; Matthew Burke, Steveni Lombard, Martin Staunton (capt), Ruairi Byrne, Danny Qualter, Ryan O’Meara, Sean O’Connell, Ciaran Booth.
Replacements: Oisin Dolan, James Kelly, Fionn McDonnell, Frankie Hopkins, Tom Shine, Adam O’Carroll.
UCC 46 BANBRIDGE 34, the Mardyke
Scorers: UCC: Tries: Louis Bruce 2, Matt O’Callaghan, Mark Bissessar, Sean Condon 2; Cons: Louis Bruce 5; Pens: Louis Bruce 2
Banbridge: Tries: Robin Sinton, Aaron Kennedy, Adam Doherty, Peter Cromie; Cons: James Humphreys 4; Pens: James Humphreys 2
HT: UCC 23 Banbridge 13
UCC: Louis Bruce (capt); Sean Condon, Darragh French, Daniel Squires, Matt O’Callaghan; Cian Whooley, Ignasi Rodriguez; Rory Duggan, Scott Buckley, Daniel McCarthy, Aiden Brien, Mark Bissessar, Sam O’Sullivan, Jacob Sheahan, Patrick McBarron.
Replacements: Luke McAuliffe, Stewart Lynch, David O’Halloran, Conor Booth, Ollie Young, Johnny Murphy.
BANBRIDGE: Adam Doherty; James Buller, Andrew Morrison, Josh Cromie, Jamie Mullan; James Humphreys, Aaron Kennedy; Josh Chambers, Peter Cromie (capt), Michael Cromie, Alex Thompson, Matthew Laird, Max Lyttle, Robin Sinton, Greg Jones.
Replacements: John Wilson, Ryan Emerson, Martin Vorster, Neil Kilpatrick, Macauley Little, Rob Lyttle.
DIVISION 2A:
Blackrock College 27 Queen’s University 28, Stradbrook
MU Barnhall 21 Cashel 17, Parsonstown
Navan 21 Old Crescent 22, Balreask Old
Nenagh Ormond 34 Ballymena 24, New Ormond Park
UL Bohemians 27 Dolphin 24, Annacotty
DIVISION 2B:
Belfast Harlequins 24 Greystones 12, Deramore Park
Galway Corinthians 7 Wanderers 20, Corinthian Park
Dungannon 35 Enniscorthy 26, Stevenson Park
Malahide 27 Rainey Old Boys 20, Estuary Road
Sligo 36 Galwegians 22, Hamilton Park
DIVISION 2C:
Bruff 15 Bangor 13, Kilballyowen Park
Clonmel 10 Skerries 18, Ardgaoithe
Instonians 56 Ballina 7, Shaw’s Bridge
Midleton 24 Tullamore 17, Towns Park
Sunday’s Well 49 Omagh Academicals 15, Musgrave Park
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AIL Men's All-Ireland Leagues Wrap