Gonzaga made history as a late Tom Wyley try saw them record their first ever Leinster Schools Senior Cup crown this afternoon.

On our national holiday it is the school from Ranelagh who will have extra cause for celebration as they ended years of hurt to win their first senior cup, making up for a tough defeat last year.

Wyley will be the hero as he grabbed the late try, but Stephen McMahon was a huge player for his school, scoring 20 of their 35 points this afternoon, we were threatened to a real spectacle in the RDS, a third final appearance and it was third time lucky for Zaga.

It was Rock who got off to the perfect start with a try inside three minutes, Oliver Coffey kicked in to put Zaga under pressure, they allowed a bounce and with that Blackrock could use their possession to gain ground, an initial drive from Michael Colreavy got them in the zone.

Further drive from James O’Sullivan and Mikey Yarr brought them dangerously close to the line, their forwards have been potent at getting over and it was the big number 8 Tom Brigg at the end of it who powered over for the opening try, Coffey as reliable as ever added the extra two points to level.

Gonzaga would not let their heads drop and three minutes later the danger man Hugo McLaughlin squeezed his way through the Blackrock rear guard to grab Zaga’s first try, a quality attacking move finished by the full-back as he made the killer move and his run was too strong as a weak Blackrock challenge saw him over, Stephen McMahon stepped up and levelled the tie with a sweetly struck conversion.

A dramatic energy sapping opening ten minutes almost saw another try for the defending champions, coming from their lineout, their maul formed well and Yarr scurried over for their second try however the referee viewed the move as illegal and the relief of the whistle kept the score at 7-7.

Zaga through the penalty had the chance to get ground toward the Rock end, they sniffed a chance and worked their way but a loose pass killed the momentum they had built up and then a penalty went the way of Blackrock to clear their lines once again.

Both teams were in the feeling out process and we ticked beyond the midway mark of the opening half, both teams had chances but the best again fell the way of Blackrock as Yarr got over in the corner but he knocked on the ball in the build-up.

Charlie Moloney was the next to have a chance for Rock at getting a second try as his powerful drive saw him over the whitewash but Zaga did enough in deference to hold the full-backup from grounding.

Zaga were desperate in the tackle doing everything possible to deny Rock a score, two penalties however in quick succession gave Coffey the chance at points from the tee, the scrum-half tapping over the penalty on the 22m line to put his school ahead by three. 

Once again it did not take long for Gonzaga to find a reply after conceding a score, a terrific carry from Charlie Kennedy gave them room to march closer to the line, the referee awarded them a penalty at the breakdown, McMahon was clever with a quick tap and go and dived low over the whitewash as Blackrock were unable to stop him, a piece of ingenuity and brilliance by the Zaga fly-half, he made it a full seven added to the board kicking his second conversion of the afternoon.

Fortune's favour the brave and a few minutes later McMahon produced another piece of brilliance to set up their third try, McMahon kicked in behind the Rock defence to try and gain yardage to find touch, Conor O’Shaughnessy kept the ball in play but it bounced awkwardly and into the hands of the chasing JP Breslin.

Breslin had done enough to recycle the ball and as the Blackrock defence were at sixes and sevens McMahon gathered possession and raced over for his second try, having landed the conversion he had 16 of their 21 points and the side who never won the cup before looked the favourites at the break as they built a 21-10 advantage.

Rock had the ideal start to the second half, an early penalty for a high tackle allowed them early possession in the Zaga half, this was an issue as the much stronger Rock side would use their forwards to gain ground, carrying well they inches for the line and Finn O’Neill was there to cross for their second try in the 41st minute, Coffey with the extras and game back on just a four point game.

But a testament to their game, Zaga had done well to open up Blackrock, from a midfield scrum McMahon served as the architect for a blitzing move, he raced through the Rock cover, offloading to McLaughlin, he had Breslin free down the right win and his quick hands allowed his winger over for their fourth try, Zaga back confident with McMahon adding the extra two points.

Straight from the restart however Gonzaga failed to gather possession and Rock showed their never say die attitude that they weren’t going away, carrying well the inches turned to yards and from close range Alex Mullan got over the line for their third try, an immediate impact response for them as Coffey made it once again a four point game with his trusty right boot.

Mullan bagged his second try in the 56th minute as Blackrock had the momentum following their tighthead props earlier score, Brigg made a terrific earlier carry to put them in scoring position and Mullan charged over bulldozing any challenger who stood in his way to grab a crucial score to put them back in the lead. 

The TMO was needed to see if Conall Hodges had interfered with play by blocking a Zaga tackler but the try was awarded and as Coffey tapped over another close range conversion they had moved three points ahead, their first time leading since McMahon’s first try in the 28th minute.

It was a dramatic conclusion to events as Zaga were throwing everything in their locker to try and snatch the game in the dying minutes, Aidan O’Flanagan made a couple of crucial carries to gain them yardage, one of which forced a penalty that they kicked for touch.

The lineout was good and with it Zaga binded their maul and pumped the legs to gain yardage, muscles tightening, both sets of players using every inch of their strength to hold them shy of the line, Zaga kept pressing and felt they had gotten over but were held up as Blackrock got a goal line drop out.

Zaga were unrelenting as every man played a part in trying to break through the Rock defence, gaining ground they controlled the ball well and the captain Paul Wilson played the killer pass to setup Tom Wyley and the lock crossed for the game winning score, McMahon converted to ensure no three pointer was good enough for Rock to take it.