February 08th 2010

BUCCANEERS U-21’s also enjoyed a bright start at home to Corinthians in their South-West Conference National League pool game at foggy Dubarry Park on Saturday when they prevailed by the narrowest of margins on a 18-17 scoreline.

Buccs applied virtually all the pressure in the opening quarter and opened the scoring with an Adam Kennedy penalty. Their effective picking and driving had Corinthians defending in depth but Shane O’Neill was soon crossing over for a try which Kennedy converted for a promising 10-0 advantage before Corinthians reduced their arrears with a penalty before halftime.

On the turnover, the visitors began to make inroads particularly when using their centres and they got in for a try on the left to tighten the margin. Buccs responded well and, after they made life difficult for the westerners at a scrum close to the visitors’ line, Robert Reid popped on to the loose ball to pilfer a try. Corinthians added three penalties before the finish but Kennedy’s second successful penalty proved decisive for Buccs for whom the tireless John Hayes, skipper Paul Robinson and young Reid (making his first start) all did well in the forwards battle. Ger Fallon was pick of the backline where Ian Coffey showed his potential when going forward and he will be a real prospect when he gains more experience with his defensive skills.

CORRECTION:- The gremlins got at last week’s report when Mark Fitzgibbon’s name was not included as the scorer of Buccs first try, which he secured after racing three-quarters the length of the pitch to touch down!

BUCCANEERS:- M.Fitzgibbon; G.Fallon, J.Byrne, C.Draper, I.Coffey; A.Kennedy, C.Molloy; D.Henshaw, D.Egan, T.Thompson; P.Robinson (captain), S.O’Neill; R.Reid, J.Hayes and K.Headd. Replacements used:- D.Kelly (for Egan) and R.Wakefield (for Reid).