Lansdowne becoming ‘tough nut to crack’

Lansdowne 16 St Mary’s 10

Lansdowne had trailed their Dublin rivals 10-3 at the break and for long spells looked like they were heading for a second home defeat of the season.

It certainly seemed only a matter of time before St Mary’s would rescue a result after going through phase after phase metres from Lansdowne’s line in the closing stages.

But the home side managed to repel the attacks and move above a faltering Terenure.

“The league is very, very tough,” Ruddock said. “A lot of sides are having to dig out results. Even sides that maybe haven’t got a lot of points on the board, like Dolphin, are still really good teams.

“The further you go up the league the more of a benchmark side you are and teams will target you more. St Mary’s were incredibly tough, they tackled everything that moved.

“We showed a lot of character. We were down at half-time and we have been down on a number of occasions at half-time. But the way we defended at the end typified the character we have.

“Our goal this year was to try to become the top defensive team, whether we win the league or reach the playoffs. We haven’t even considered those things, we are trying to become a tough nut to crack.

“It’s very rewarding to see a defensive effort and the tackles going in like they were at the end. The group will take a lot from that.”

Second-half tries from John Coleman and Peter Dooley put Lansdowne in a winning position and Ruddock also paid tribute to referee Nigel Correll before emphasising that he won’t allow his side to get carried away.

“I have to say that the referee was fantastic. He got all the decisions correct and his communication with the players was excellent.

“But there’s a long way to go yet. I’ve been coaching for 27 or 28 years and you never know what’s going to be coming around the corner at you.”

LANSDOWNE: S Deasy C Kelleher, T Farrell, M Roche, J Coleman, C McKeon, P O’Driscoll; I Prenderville, T Moran, A Boland, B Moylet, S Gardiner, J McSwiney, A Conneely, J Dilger.

Replacements: Jack McKenna, Peter Dooley, Tadgh Beirne, Adam Griggs, Tom Daly

ST MARY’S: R Crotty, C Toolan, M O’Driscoll, M Sexton, C Lilly, G Dunne, D Fanagan; T O’Reilly, S McCarthy, B McGovern, C Ruddock, D O’Connor, K Sheahan, C Oliver, N Timoney.

Replacements: Dylan Fawsitt, Neil Murphy, Richard Sweeney, Barry O’Flanagan, Andrew Burke

Referee: Nigel Correll