#EnergiaAIL Men’s Divisions 2A, 2B & 2B: Round 2 Reviews

Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Divisions: Round 2 Results Round-Up

ENERGIA ALL-IRELAND LEAGUE MEN’S DIVISION 2A:

Ballymena 28 Greystones 26, Eaton Park

Callum Davidson’s last-gasp long range penalty secured victory for Ballymena in an absorbing clash with Greystones on a wet and windy afternoon at Eaton Park.

Ballymena started brightly, with tries from Paddy Browne, Angus Graham, and Ben Neely in the opening half establishing an early advantage.

Davidson converted two of them and added a penalty, giving the hosts a 22–12 lead at half-time. Tries from Dylan Henry and Reeve Satherley had a resilient Greystones in double figures.

The visitors lifted their game further and tries from Conor Pearse and Jack O’Brien, both converted by Gavin Rochford, had them leading 26-25 heading into the final minutes.

It was Ballymena who held their nerve, though, and Davidson struck the match-winning penalty to snatch a hard-earned 28-26 win for the hosts.

Banbridge 7 Wanderers 18, Rifle Park

Two tries from Louis McDonough ultimately proved the difference in a physical encounter at Rifle Park, as Wanderers secured their first win since making the move up to Division 2A.

In an absorbing opening period to the game, McDonagh crossed for the sole score of the opening period, putting the visitors ahead 5-0 going into the break.

The visitors extended their advantage after the break through a David Fitzgibbon penalty and a second McDonough try, which Fitzgibbon converted for a 15-0 lead.

Banbridge kept pushing and were rewarded with a try from Adam Doherty that was converted by Charlie Beattie. That seemed to give the hosts a late momentum boost, but they could not add further scores, with Jack Connolly landing a penalty to see out the win for Wanderers late on.

Cashel 10 Old Crescent 18, Spafield

For the first time in their history, Old Crescent recorded an All-Ireland League win over Cashel, and this Munster derby was a gripping contest.

The visitors struck early through Stephen Kiely’s sixth-minute try, with Aaron Cosgrove adding a second midway through the half to give Crescent a 1-3 lead at the break. John O’Sullivan’s penalty kept Cashel in touch.

Jeff Williams extended Crescent’s advantage with a penalty on 58 minutes before Dan Hurley crossed for their third try shortly afterwards to make it 18-3.

Cashel battled to the end, with Michael Treacy scoring a late converted try to narrow the gap, but Old Crescent showed their maturity to hold on and secure their second win of the season.

Dungannon 18 Galway Corinthians 17, Stevenson Park

For the second week in a row, a late surge from Dungannon got them over the line against Galway Corinthians at Stevenson Park.

Having scored the winning try away to Greystones the previous week, James Gamble popped up with the winning score once again to see Dungannon continue their unbeaten start in the third tier.

Adam Milligan opened the scoring for Dungannon in the seventh minute, but Corinthians hit back through Ian Staunton’s try, converted by Jack Conway along with a penalty, to lead 10–5 at the break.

Things got better for the visitors after the break, with Darragh Fitzpatrick’s 55th-minute try converted by Conway, moving them 17-8 in front.

Dungannon showed great resolve, as Ben McCaughey landed two crucial penalties, before Gamble crossed for a dramatic late try in the 78th minute. McCaughey’s nerveless conversion sealed a memorable comeback win for the home side.

MU Barnhall 24 Shannon 17, Parsonstown

A pair of Shane Mallon tries in the closing stages sealed a dramatic win for MU Barnhall in a closely-fought match against Shannon in Parsonstown.

The home side opened the scoring through Greg Edogun in the 12th minute, but Shannon responded before the break with a try from Cian McCann, converted by Cillian O’Connor, to take a 7–5 lead into half-time.

Matt Te Pou’s try early in the second half, again converted by O’Connor, extended Shannon’s advantage, and a Jamie Gavin penalty on 70 minutes pushed them 17–10 ahead. As Barnhall remained within an arms length through Keith Farrell’s 55th-minute try.

But it was the Connacht capped Mallon that stole the show. Crossing twice inside the five minutes, with Neil Byrne converting both to secure a dramatic result for the home side.

ENERGIA ALL-IRELAND LEAGUE MEN’S DIVISION 2B:

Clogher Valley 19 Malone 21, the Cran

Malone overturned a half-time deficit to defeat Ulster rivals Clogher Valley at the Cran, with Callum Knox’s brace of tries and Matty Rae’s accurate boot proving crucial for the visitors.

Clogher Valley started strongly, with early tries from Joshua Kyle and Matthew Bothwell, along with a conversion by David Maxwell, giving the hosts a 12-9 half-time advantage. Rae kept Malone in touch with three penalties.

David Stinson crossed for Clogher Valley’s third try to extend their lead, but Knox scored twice in quick succession, with Rae converting the first try. In a physical ending to the contest, Malone held on to secure another valuable win.

Enniscorthy 45 Navan 5, Alcast Park

A blistering first-half performance put the wheels in motion for Enniscorthy to register their first win of the Division 2B season in breathtaking fashion.

The hosts were in fine form from the start, with Ivan Jacob, Ben Kidd, and Graham Barry all crossing inside the opening 15 minutes at Alcast Park.

Davie Murphy added the first of his tries, while Fiachra Hourihane and Rhyan Whelan also touched down before the interval. Kidd fired over five conversions to give Enniscorthy a commanding 40-0 lead.

Navan battled bravely in the second half and were rewarded when Conor Hand crossed the 53rd minute, but the day belonged to Enniscorthy, with Murphy adding his second score to wrap up a strong showing by the Wexford men.

Galwegians 40 Rainey 12, Crowley Park

Two wins from two for Galwegians to start off the new season, and another high-scoring performance to get them over the line against Rainey.

The home side laid the foundations with early tries from Dylan Keane and Rob Deacy securing an early buffer. Stephen Mannion added a third before half-time, converting all three to give Galwegians a 21–0 lead at the interval.

Rainey showed more intent after the restart and were rewarded with a try from Daniel O’Neill. However, Galwegians kept up their clinical streak throughout the second half.

The Blues added further tries through Oisin McNicholas, Cian Brady, and Calum Elwood to seal a convincing result. Jody McMurray did grab a late try for Rainey, which was converted by Scott McLean.

Sligo 29 Buccaneers 12, Hamilton Park

Sligo made it back-to-back wins to start the season on a positive note, as a high-scoring opening half set the tone for a bonus point success.

Euan Brown opened the scoring with a seventh-minute penalty before Sligo ran in three tries in a devastating 12-minute spell. Kuba Wojtkowicz, Ben Hynes, and Mark McGlynn all crossed the line, with Brown converting each to give the home side a commanding 24–0 lead at the break.

Buccaneers rallied late in the second half, with Corey Reid scoring twice in quick succession, the second converted by Dylan Duffy, but Louis McVitty’s last-minute try sealed the bonus point and a deserved win for Sligo.

UL Bohemian 24 Skerries 17, UL 4G pitch

A second bonus point win of the season has the Red Robins flying high at the summit of the table, but they did have to weather a Skerries storm in the second half to take the points.

UL Bohemian started strongly, with tries from Killian Dineen, Paul Clancy and Jordan Mills, two of them converted by Oisin Fagan, giving the hosts a 19–5 lead at half-time.

Skerries had responded with an early Darragh McEneaney try, keeping them within striking distance at the break.

After the interval, Skerries fought back through Brian Walsh’s try before Jake Considine crossed for Bohs’ fourth try just minutes later. Mikey Sherlock claimed a third try for the visitors, but despite some late pressure, UL stood firm.

ENERGIA ALL-IRELAND LEAGUE MEN’S DIVISION 2C:

Ballyclare 5 Thomond 29, the Cloughan

The dream start to their long awaited Energia All Ireland League return continued for Thomond, as they recorded back to back wins with a bonus point victory over Ballyclare at the Cloughan.

The visitors opened the scoring through an early penalty from Evan Cusack, before Colin Slater crossed for Thomond’s first try, converted by Cusack, to take a 10–5 lead into half-time. Ballyclare notched their first score through Jacob Scarlett’s 38th-minute try.

Thomond pulled away after the interval, with Sam Birrane, Jake Connolly, and Ryain O’Donovan Ahern all crossing for tries, three of which were converted by Cusack. The result reflected Thomond’s superior attacking and defensive discipline throughout the contest.

Bective Rangers 22 Midleton 7, Energia Park

A long awaited home game back in the Energia All-Ireland League was greeted with victory for Bective Rangers, a brace of tries in each half securing a maximum points haul in their first win of the season.

Chris Poole opened the scoring early for Bective with Midleton’s JB du Toit responding soon after, with Seamus Lyne converting to put Midleton ahead 7-5.. Matthew Gilsenan’s try just before half-time, would give Bective a slender 10–7 lead at the break.

Tries from James Gallagher and Craig Cantwell helped ensure the win in the second half, with Conor Halpenny keeping the scoreboard ticking by converting Gallagher’s try.

Bruff 28 Monkstown 19, Kilballyowen Park

After defeat marked their two previous meetings, Bruff claimed a hard-fought victory over Monkstown in Kilballyowen Park, sealing the win with two late tries in the final quarter.

Monkstown started brightly with early scores from Stephen McVeigh and Rob Wynne both converted by Matt Stapleton, but Bruff hit back through Paul Collins  and Kieran O’Dwyer to level the tie 14–14 at half-time.

Ruadhan McDonnell’s try nudged Monkstown ahead again in the second half, but Bruff finished strongly as Patricio Neheun and Andrew O’Byrne both crossed the whitewash, with Collins adding the conversions to secure the points for the home side.

Dolphin 32 Clonmel 19, Virgin Media Park

Dolphin claimed the Munster derby bragging rights with a five try haul securing their first win of the season at the expense of Clonmel.

The home side started brightly with Liam Ormond, Brian O’Mahony, and Richie Heaslip all crossing in the opening half, with Hunter Yarrell adding a conversion. Clonmel’s Drew Musa scored just before the break to keep his team in touch.

After half-time, Clonmel narrowed the gap to just three points with tries from Brandon Delicato and Jack Walsh, but Dolphin finished with a flourish when Sam Boyle and James Vaughan grabbed tries during the closing stages, Yarrell adding a conversion to an earlier penalty.

Malahide 17 Belfast Harlequins 19, Estuary Road

Nathaniel Peters last-minute try snatched victory for the visitors in a dramatic clash in Estuary Road. Malahide looked like sealing the win in the closing exchanges, only for Belfast Harlequins to run in with a last gasp try.

The visitors had started the better in the first half, opening with tries from Callum Florence and Joel Dundas, both converted by Johnny McCracken, to lead 14–0 at the break.

Malahide came roaring back after the restart, with Reece O’Connell and James Hurley crossing for converted tries from David O’Halloran. The boot of O’Halloran nudged them ahead 17–14 with a late penalty.

However, Belfast Harlequins refused to yield, Peters struck in the final minute to secure a hard-fought away win, leaving the Malahide players crestfallen.

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