Oliver tips Murray to be future Munster scrum-half
Murray kicked two penalties and a conversion for the Limerick club in their hard-fought 16-6 victory away to Blackrock College in Saturday’s AIB Cup quarter-final.
The 20-year-old Patrickswell native is in Year Two of the Munster Academy, but has made huge strides in recent seasons under the watchful eye of Oliver, himself a former Scotland international scrum-half. “I definitely think he can make the step up to senior,” said Oliver, who coaches the seniors alongside Paul Cunningham at Dooradoyle. “I think he’s a great prospect. He’s a good learner and is developing his whole game. He can run, he’s quite strong and tall – over six foot – and has a great pass, something he works hard at. We have high hopes for Conor – he puts a lot of work in himself and hopefully he takes every chance that comes along. What I like about him too is that he learns quickly.”
The Limerick club atoned for their heavy 48-14 AIB League defeat earlier this season at the hands of the ‘Rock with Murray very much at the heart of his side’s Cup victory.
’Rock’s cause wasn’t helped by the absence of some key players, including Andrew Conway, Brendan Macken and Niall Morris, all on duty with Leinster A in the British and Irish Cup on Saturday.
Garryowen dominated up front, taking a slender 3-0 lead in at the break, but the visitors notched the all-important try in the 53rd minute when Robert Meyer intercepted a pass and dived over under the posts. Murray added the extras and then tacked on two penalties before James Power got his side on the score-sheet with two penalties.
Yesterday Garryowen were drawn away to either Dolphin or Galwegians in the AIB Cup semi-final. The Dolphin/Galwegians game was postponed due to the adverse weather conditions in the Cork area.
First-time semi-finalists, Ballymena were the first name drawn out of the hat by Ireland defence coach, Les Kiss, at RTE Radio Centre. The Braidmen secured home advantage after their 20-19 quarter-final win over Old Belvedere at Eaton Park on Saturday.
The Ulster side could face either Cork Constitution or Division 3 side Queen’s University in the last-four. The Cork Con/Queen’s quarter-final tie was postponed due to an unplayable pitch.
Meanwhile, AIB Junior Cup holders Tullamore will have home advantage against Armagh in a mouth-watering semi-final next month.
Tullamore took a step closer to winning back-to-back titles with a 22-15 quarter-final success over Sligo, while Armagh – first-time semi-finalists – accounted for Cill Dara 24-3.
The second semi-final will see Cashel or Monivea at home to City of Derry. The Cashel/Monivea quarter-final tie was postponed due to an unplayable pitch.
Qualifying for their first AIB Junior Cup semi-final, City of Derry put in another big performance at Judge’s Road when they overwhelmed Boyne by 45-5.
The AIB Junior Cup trophy has resided in Leinster for the past three seasons, with Seapoint (2007), Navan (2008) and Tullamore (2009) keeping it in the east.
AIB Senior Cup: Ballymena 20 Old Belvedere 19, Blackrock College 6 Garryowen 16, Cork Constitution P Queens University P, Dolphin P Galwegians P.
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