Sport

Break by Duffy snatches victory

Galwegians got their campaign back on track with a first home win of the season against Lansdowne, thanks to the brilliance of…

By LINLEY MACKENZIE
Mon Dec 17 2001 - 00:00

Galwegians got their campaign back on track with a first home win of the season against Lansdowne, thanks to the brilliance of their Connacht full back Gavin Duffy.

Trailing 13-16 and facing another defeat, the home side manufactured a try from deep inside their own 22, five minutes into injury time.

Lansdowne, on the attack and looking good for a third try, which would have denied Galwegians a bonus point, were penalised for a crooked line-out. The home side had no choice but to keep the ball in hand. First centre Mervyn Murphy made the break before Duffy raced virtually the length of the pitch and switched inside to find Eric Elwood who supplied the pass for flanker Johnny O'Connor to claim the winning score.

Hooker Manus Uijs, in his first appearance for the Glenina outfit, made an early impression as Galwegians had the superiority in the scrums, and two Elwood penalties and a try by prop Peter Bracken saw them 13-5 in front at half-time.

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Lansdowne had scored an early try from their hooker Anthony Ronan and they crept back into the game in the second half, using their number eight Shane O╣Connor to secure possession at the tail of the line.

Ronan and Adam Magro continued to break the tackle, and Magro put left wing Fiachra Baynes through after 57 minutes to close the gap to 13-10 before Alan McGowan added two penalties to give Lansdowne the lead - if in vain - with seven minutes remaining.

Scoring sequence: 4 mins: Elwood penalty, 3-0; 8 mins: Ronan try, 3-5; 18 mins: Elwood penalty, 6-5; 27mins: Bracken try, Elwood conversion, 13-5; 57 mins: Baynes try, 13-10; 69 mins: McGowan penalty, 13- 13; 73 mins: McGowan penalty, 13-16; 85 mins: O'Connor try, Elwood conversion, 20 -16.

GALWEGIANS: G Duffy; B Liddy, P Duignan, M Murphy, N Carolan; E Elwood, J Heaslip; , D McFarland, M Uijs, P Bracken, J Casserly, D Browne, M Swift, J O╣Connor, B Gavin. Replacements: J Charlie for Swfit (half-time), A Kershaw for McFarland (59 mins).

LANSDOWNE: B Doherty; R Dolan, B Geraghty, A Magro, F Baynes; A McGowan, S Whelan; C McMahon, A Ronan, E Bohan, B Cusack, G Quinn, S Rooney, L Toland, S O╣Connor. Replacement: J Lynn for McMahon (58 mins).

Referee: T Redmond (Leinster).