Connacht Under-17A League
Monivea RFC 12, Creggs RFC 14.
Creggs Under-17’s had already guaranteed a league Semi Final slot before travelling to Monivea RFC last Sunday in the Connacht Under-17A League, but will be disappointed with their performance especially in the first half and will have lots to work on if they are to continue to progress in the competition.
| POS | TEAM | PLD | W | L | D | PF | PA | DIFF | BP M | DED | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Ballinasloe | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 266 | 49 | 217 | 0 | 0 | 32 |
| 0 | Galwegians | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 313 | 111 | 202 | 0 | 0 | 28 |
| 0 | Buccaneers | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 214 | 118 | 96 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| 0 | Creggs | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 169 | 168 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| 0 | Sligo | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 213 | 201 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 0 | Corinthians | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 245 | 197 | 48 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| 0 | Monivea | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 129 | 287 | -158 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 0 | Claremorris/Tuam | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 95 | 237 | -142 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | Ballina | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 51 | 327 | -276 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Monivea started the game well and were aided by Creggs mistakes in the set piece and in open play and were well worth their 12-0 half time lead.
Creggs regrouped and had a much better second half. Up front Lorcan Maher was very impressive on his introduction and Ciaran Corcoran, Jack Tucker, Adam Donnelly and Ethan Glennon carried well while out wide Mark Dowd and Cian Glennon were a threat going forward.
Creggs got back into the game after 7 minutes of the second half when good work upfront from Ronan Lambe, Kian Moran and Tiernan O Sullivan, set the ball up for Ben Finnerty to release the back line and Aaron Lyons went over in the corner after the ball went through the back line. Mark Purcell converted from the sideline to reduce the deficit to 12-7.
Creggs continued to attack and their set piece was now functioning and giving them much needed possession. Creggs took the lead with 10 minutes remaining when good carry from Kian Moran was carried on by Jack Tucker who offloaded to Ciaran Corcoran to go over in the left corner which again Purcell converted to lead 14-12.
Creggs held out for the win despite Monivea having a good opportunity to take the points from a penalty and they now look forward to a semi final which will be in two weeks probably against a very impressive Ballinasloe RFC team.
Also, in the Connacht Under-17 Cup Draw, Creggs will be away to the winners of Sligo and Corrib in the Quarter-Final on March 10th.
Well done to the Under-17 players and coaches – we wish them well in their upcoming big games.
Creggs Rugby: Conor McNulty, Ethan Glennon, Kian Moran, Jack Tucker, Ronan Lambe, Adam Donnelly, Ciaran Corcoran , Mark Purcell, , Lorcan Maher, Aaron Lyons, Ben Finnerty, Darren Gately, Tiernan O Sullivan, Mark Dowd, Jack Deegan, Cian Glennon,Daniel Hill, Naoise Coyle, and Kyle Kelly.