Blackrock College maintained their dominance at the under20 grade, albeit with a somewhat fortunate victory in yesterday's McCorry Cup final at Donnybrook.
The trojan work of Old Belvedere's Gio Fusco, Rory Keane, Brian McDonald, Steve Walsh and the outstanding John Logan was frustratingly scuppered by team-mates as much as by the vigilant tackling of Richard Woods and second-half replacement, Barry Gibney. Indeed Gibney's introduction greatly aided an overworked Blackrock defence that creaked audibly.
His pace to the loose ball and authoritative tackling effectively stymied any menace that Belvedere mustered in the closing 20 minutes.
Blackrock took the lead on three minutes when number eight John Spellman took a line-out eight metres from the Belvedere line, smuggled the ball to hooker Peter Smyth and he was driven over. Daragh Kavanagh missed the conversion.
A Donal Martin penalty narrowed the deficit temporarily but Blackrock wing David Johnson scampered in under the posts, coming off his blindside wing to take the ball between the centres. Kavanagh's conversion edged his team further ahead, but the opening 40 minutes were to contain two further tries, the first to Belvedere flanker Logan, the other, Smyth's second three minutes before the interval.
Martin's second penalty and a superb try by Logan, following good work by John Goodwin and Walsh tantalised the vociferous Belvedere following but despite two further penalty chances, both of which Martin missed, they could not bridge the narrow divide on the scoreboard.
Scoring sequence: 3 mins: Smyth try, 5-0; 15: Martin penalty, 5-3; 20: Johnson try, Kavanagh conversion 12-3; 32: Logan try, 12-8; 37: Smyth try, 17-8; 55: Martin penalty, 17-11; 68: Logan try, 1716.
Blackrock College: D Kavanagh; R Guinan, A Hegarty, G Duffy, D Johnson; A Boyd, C Curneen; T O'Rourke, P Smyth (capt), S Tanner; G Ryan, J Smith; K Murphy, J Spellman, R Woods. Replacements: C Lenihan for O'Rourke (halftime), B Gibney for Murphy (60 mins).
Old Belvedere: D Keogh; F Meehan, K Jolly, D Divilly, T McDowell; D Martin, J Goodwin; G Fusco, S Cahill, L Eyers; B McDonald, JP Finlay; J Logan, S Walsh, M McLoughlin (capt). Replacements: R Keane for Eyers (24 mins), P Ball for Finlay (67 mins).
Referee: D Woods (Leinster).
