Round 14 of the Energia All-Ireland Division 1B kicked off with all five games on Saturday afternoon. The round served up a number of thrills as Old Wesley and Malone served up arguably the game of the season.
The two teams served up eight tries as Old Wesley racked up their 13th win of the campaign. While Highfield bounced back against Old Belvedere and Navan stunned City of Armagh at home.
Malone 29-34 Old Wesley, Gibson Park
League leaders Old Wesley scored five tries as they edged eighth placed Malone 29-34 at Gibson Park.
The game was on a knife edge throughout as Rory Campbell levelled the game at 29-29 with just minutes remaining before Josh Pim and Charlie O’Regan sealed a hard fought win for the visitors.
Highfield 22-20 Old Belvedere, Woodleigh Park
Highfield rebounded from last weekend’s drubbing at the hands of Old Wesley as they edged Old Belvedere 22-20 at Woodleigh Park.
Old Belvedere briefly threatened a comeback as they closed to within two points thanks to a 78th minute try from Colm Hogan, but it wasn’t enough as Highfield held on for a crucial victory.
St Mary’s College 18-25 Shannon, Templeville Road
10 points from the boot of Jake Flannery proved to be the difference as Shannon edged St Mary’s College 18-25 at Templeville Road.
The outside halves put on a show at Templeville Road as they combined for 23 points in a clash that saw the fourth and fifth placed teams square off.
Navan 18-11 City of Armagh, Balreask Old
Navan picked up their third win of the season as they stunned sixth placed City of Armagh in a 18-11 win at Balreask Old.
Eight points from the boot of fly half Colm O’Reilly proved to be decisive as Navan drew level on points with ninth placed Banbridge.
Naas 43-21 Banbridge, Forenaughts
Six try Naas moved into third place as they overpowered ninth placed Banbridge in a 43-21 victory at Forenaughts.
The hosts powered into a quick 28-0 lead as they wrapped up the bonus point before the interval, Banbridge added three tries to add some respectability to the scoreboard in the second half.
