Bandon beat Ardscoil Rís to reach Munster Senior Cup quarter-finals

Bandon Grammar School will now face St Munchin's in the last eight.

Wed, 24 Jan, 2024 - 18:06

Stephen Barry, Virgin Media Park

Pinergy Munster Schools Senior Cup round 2

Bandon Grammar School 23

Ardscoil Rís 17

Bandon Grammar School booked their trip to meet St Munchin’s in the Munster Schools Senior Cup quarter-finals by getting one over on familiar foes Ardscoil Rís.

The Cork school had won the group-stage game between these sides last November but Ardscoil’s U18s turned them over in December’s Bowen Shield final.

Bandon were good value for this victory when you consider they crossed the line six times in all. That they only returned three tries, by Zach Piper, Calem Harte, and Cian Ring, owes to some last-gasp Ardscoil heroics to hold them up on three further occasions.

Seán O’Halloran’s second try of the day made it close but Ardscoil couldn’t launch a final attack to complete the comeback.

The Shannonsiders, who featured four of last year’s Junior Cup runners-up, with another four among the replacements, will also rue two yellow cards which left them down to 14 towards the end of both halves.

Bandon exercised their power in the maul and scrum from the start although it was some improvised brilliance that created their first opportunity. Senan Aherne recovered a dropped ball and then picked himself up from a tap tackle inside his own 22 to beat two defenders and race into the opposition half.

From the line-out maul that followed, hooker Piper was at the back to cross the line. Rory Golden’s conversion attempt struck the post.

Ardscoil responded with waves of attack but Lloyd Costelloe was held up when they battled over the line. A penalty gave them a second chance, though, which O’Halloran grabbed with both hands, the scrum-half dashing untouched under the posts. Aaron Byrnes’ conversion made it 7-5.

Bandon Grammar School supporters at the Munster Senior Cup. Picture: brendan Gleeson

Bandon came up just short with another pair of advancing line-out mauls, the first stopped illegally and then the second ended by a knock-on.

Ardscoil were then reduced to 14 until half-time as Matthew Browne was sin-binned on the half-hour.

Bandon were held up on their subsequent attack after Calem Harte had barelled through three defenders but a high tackle allowed Golden to restore their lead, 8-7.

And Harte would get his try in the 35th minute after good work by Golden. The full-back was desperately unlucky, however, to see a second conversion rebound off the same post and Harte exited nursing a bang to his head soon after.

Into the second half and Bandon came close again but Michael Kennedy was held up over the line. From the goal-line drop-out, Golden slotted a super drop kick to extend their lead to nine.

A Byrnes penalty cancelled out that score before Bandon were held up a third time; Adam Hutchinson out of luck on this occasion.

Joshua Dillon was sent to the sin bin soon after and Bandon made the most of their numerical advantage in the 69th minute. After a line-out drive broke down, it was back-up hooker Cian Ring who crashed over from close range. Golden’s kick made it 23-10.

Ardscoil never gave up and after winning an against-the-head scrum penalty, they were rewarded when O’Halloran, now switched to the wing, collected Byrnes’ long pass to touch down in the eighth added minute. The out-half added the extras but they ran out of time for a winner.

Scorers:

Bandon Grammar School:

Tries: Z Piper, C Harte, C Ring

Con: R Golden

Pen: R Golden

Drop goal: R Golden.

Ardscoil Rís:

Tries: S O’Halloran (2)

Cons: A Byrnes (2)

Penalty: A Byrnes

BANDON GRAMMAR SCHOOL: R Golden; A Hutchinson (S Aherne 73), C Harte (M Kennedy 35), N Miskella (M Tubb 75), K O’Herlihy (R Kingston 65); S Aherne (C Smyth 65), Z Canniffe; M Kelly (S O’Callaghan 70), Z Piper (C Ring 68), K O’Regan (A Cleary Zurek 70); F O’Neill (C Healy 70), R O’Callaghan; A Brennan (A Hunter 78), M McQuiston, C Mueller.

Replacements not used: A Hunter, M Tubb, S Fuller.

Yellow cards: M Browne (30), J Dillon (66).

ARDSCOIL RÍS: J Butler; D O’Connell (D Collins 73), J Dillon, M O’Donoghue (O Desmond 27), T Hourigan; A Byrnes, S O’Halloran; J Koura (K Rooney 53) (J Koura 66), D Glennon, C McCarthy (J Kelly h-t); D O’Flaherty (D Leyden h-t) (L Costelloe 66), L Costelloe (A Kennedy 53); M Browne (S Horrigan 65), S Horrigan (F Bell 41), A Kennedy (D O’Flaherty 48).

Replacements not used: D Salmon, L Dissanayake, O Quinlivan, C Quirke.

Referee: M Reidy (MAR).