Clontarf and Terenure remain focused on the other at the top, Shannon and UCD picked up big wins as Garryowen have been relegated from 1A.
Cork Constitution 29-34 UCD, Temple Hill
UCD moved up to seventh after a hard earned win in toppling Cork Con in what is a big result for the students.
Michael Moloney added two early penalties before Jack Boyle got over to make it a 13-0 lead after 25 minutes, Alex O’Grady added a second minutes later as Con were 20 points adrift. Daniel Hurley touched down for Con after the half hour mark which was converted by captain Aidan Moynihan, he added a penalty and Con were just ten behind, that was until Sean O’Brien added a converted try before the break to leave ot 27-10 at the midway point.
Into the second half and Con hit a purple patch seeing them hit three tries to change the dynamic, Brendan Quinlan, David Hyland and Ross O’Neill all crossed the whitewash and added the bonus point with it the lead also came to them ahead 29-27. UCD came good at the death and David Ryan ensured the win with a late try and the bonus point was also wrapped up.
Trinity 21-38 Clontarf, College Park
Clontarf remained top of the table in Division 1A, after securing the bonus point by the half time against Trinity.
Tarf started strong with Dylan Donnellan, Alex Soroka and Ben Murphy getting over as the visitors moved 17-0 ahead, the bonus point followed Tadhg Bird running 60m to offload to Noah Sheridan who dived in under the posts for a 24-0 lead. Colm Hogan sniped over and with it got Trinity on the board 24-7 behind at the interval.
Aran Egan was next to get involved for Trinity as his try was converted and the gap was ten as the hosts started the half strong, they momentum looked to have swung in their favour but after a well worked move Murphy added his second try for Tarf and they were ahead 31-14.
Colm Hogan replied in emphatic circumstances as he ran from halfway to grab the third Trinity try and we were back to ten points, but Donnellan finished the afternoon off with another try as Tarf are out for more of the same.
Garryowen 16-26 Shannon, Dooradoyle
On an afternoon where the memory of Tom Tierney was remembered, Shannon inflicted another defeat on their rivals Garryowen, sending them into 1B next season.
Shannon started well as Dan Hurley grabbed an early try, but Tony Butler added a penalty before converting a Michael Mbaud try to see the hosts ahead 10-7. Jordan Prenderville put Shannon back again with an unconverted try, before Butler added another penalty to put Garryowen ahead. Alan Flannery added a try in stoppage time to see Shannon ahead 17-13 at the break.
Michael Cooke furthered Shannon’s hopes as he struck to a penalty to add three more to the board, but Butler added one to counter and the lead was cut to four. Cooke added two more penalties to wrap up the half and see them two points from eight spot.
Terenure College 43-24 Lansdowne, Lakelands
Terenure College put two recent defeats behind as they topped South Dublin rivals Lansdowne at Lakelands Park.
Craig Adamsgot over early and winger Caolan Dooley converted, Dooley was next over the whitewash, conversion good for a 14-0 margin, Adam La Grue kept the purple patch up to make it 21-0 with Dooley nailing the conversion again.
Nure ticked off the bonus point in the 18th minute, prop Campbell Classon driving over with Dooley’s boot putting 28 points between the sides.Dooley landed a monster penalty from inside his own half to add more points, Adams added his second try as the half was coming to an end a kick through and he won the foot race. Colm de Buitléar finished a sensational half getting on the scoreboard, 43-0, six tries the hosts were well clear.
Lansdowne would get on the board in a much better second half, Cillian Redmond, Liam Forster, Liam O’Sullivan and Adam Boland all crossed for them to take a bonus point away, not enough to prevent them dropping a spot in the league standings.
Young Munster 21-0 Ballynahinch, Tom Clifford Park
A strong opening half performance from Young Munster laid the groundwork to see them dispatch Ballynahinch in Limerick.
Munster man Patrick Campbel impressed in the tie and his opening try converted by Evan Cusack gave them a 7-0 lead, Shay McCarthy added a second and Gearoid Prendergast’s charges went in 14-0 up at the break.
They played well in the second half and looked to have a third try but a deliberate knock on saw Hinch concede a penalty try, having won their last five from six Hinch came so close to the Munster side in the table but fell short on the day.
Diarmuid Kearney
Diarmuid Kearney is a freelance Sports Journalist based in Co Kerry. He has more than 5 years experience covering domestic and international soccer for different media organisations, while also working for local and national print and digital organisations covering GAA.