St Mary's stay top after win over Cork Con

St. Mary's College 21 Cork Constitution 8

Eleven points from the boot of full-back Gavin Dunne proved crucial at Templeville Road as St. Mary's College held on to top spot in the UIster Bank Division 1A table with an impressive victory against Cork Constitution.

This was the seventh win of the campaign for Peter Smyth's men, and leaves them in an excellent position in their quest to secure the Division 1 title.

Playing against a strong breeze in the opening period, Constitution had the opportunity to take the lead when scrum half Gerry Hurley stepped up to take a penalty from just outside the 22, but his kick at the posts dropped just short of the target.

Dunne missed a similar attempt for the hosts after 11 minutes, before finally opening the scoring two minutes later with a 35-metre penalty to the left of the posts.

This lead was no less that St. Mary's deserved, and a second Dunne penalty in the 20th minute increased their lead to six.

Cork Con did have a short spell of possession soon after, but it was no surprise to see St. Mary's cross for the first try of the afternoon after 27 minutes, with number 8 Hugh Hogan driving over at the end of a long maul.

Dunne was marginally off target with his conversion attempt, but even though Brian Walsh's side threatened towards the end of the half, the efforts of Hogan and Dunne were enough to give St. Mary's an 11-0 interval lead.

This put the Templeogue outfit in an excellent position to push on for victory, but Constitution started the second period brightly, and eventually got their account up and running in the 55th minute when good work from Hurley and Sean Scanlon led to Brian O'Hara putting winger Niall O'Driscoll through for a simple try in the right corner.

This score amped up the pressure on St. Mary's, but a third Dunne penalty helped to settle them down again, and even though Hurley landed a penalty with three minutes remaining, it was not enough to deny the home side as pack powerhouse Damian Hall added the clinching try in injury-time.

Scorers:

St. Mary's College: Tries: Hugh Hogan, Damian Hall; Con: Gavin Dunne; Pens: Gavin Dunne 3

Cork Constitution: Try: Niall O’Driscoll; Pen: Gerry Hurley

HT: St. Mary’s College 11 Cork Constitution 0