Reports from Youth Level 2006/07
16s Cup win ends a great season for Barnhall Youths
Report by Sean Molloy Victory in the Under 16s Metropolitan Area Cup Final brought a fitting end to a very successful season of youth rugby in Barnhall RFC. With cup wins at Under 18s and Under 20s in the last three weeks, things are looking good for the future of the Blue Bulls.
Played in the Iveagh Grounds, Crumlin, Barnhall U16s took on a very determined Skerries RFC in what was to be the closest of contests.
Skerries got off to a dream start with some excellent running lines in their backs to score two unconverted tries in the first quarter putting them 10-0 up. Barnhall dug deep and, playing into a very strong wind, ground their way back in to Skerries territory. The hard work paid off when Rian Glynn touched down in the left hand corner. The ball was teed up for the conversion but after starting his run up, the ball blew over and Joe Taylor had to quickly drop kick the conversion which was narrowly missed. After some more hard work from Barnhall, second row Rian Glynn went over to score his second try. The conversion by Taylor put Barnhall ahead 12 -10 and it stayed that way till half time.
The second half started with Barnhall having plenty of possession but Skerries defending very well. Barnhall were determined to convert the possession and territory into points. A penalty kick was taken by Taylor from 35m but the strong cross wind blew it wide. Further pressure from Barnhall lead to another penalty in roughly the same place but this time the ball sailed over the bar to put Barnhall 15 – 10 up. Things were looking better for the Blues but Skerries determination showed as they got a score under the posts which was converted to put them 17-15 ahead with 11 minutes remaining. The score stayed this way and Barnhall supporters were feeling the tension. With just 3 minutes remaining pressure in the Skerries half led to a penalty. With precious little time left a difficult decision had to be made. Captain Ben Moore elected to kick at the posts and asked Taylor to step up again. The crowd held their breath as the wind howled but a perfectly judged kick went right between the posts to give the Blues a vital lead for the dying minutes. The coach asked them to keep possession from the restart as if their life depended on it. But the Blues went one better. They kept possession and drove down to the Skerries line. A series of quick rucks split the defence to pieces and Ray Flynn pounced over the line and was mobbed by an ecstatic Barnhall team. Taylor converted what was the last kick of the game to give the Young Bulls a fitting end to a tough season.
Barnhall Team;
- Gavin Egan
- Kevin White
- Peter Hall
- Niall Cullen
- Rian Glynn
- Conor O'Melia (Derek Whiston 30min)
- Killian Breen
- Ben Moore (capt.)
- Ray Flynn
- Joe Taylor
- Dermot Feeney
- Colm Finegan (Colin O'Reilly 55min)
- Conor O'Sullivan
- Jeff El-Damasi
- Mark Canavan
Subs not used:
Stephen Hynes
Eddie Delahunt
Sean Conor
Scorers:
Joe Taylor 2C, 2P
Rian Glynn 2T
Ray Flynn T
Update May5th: Barnhall U18's V Penygraig
Barnhall 18 Penygraig 16
In the last game of the season Barnhall U18's were up against the Welsh touring side Penygraig at Maynooth NUI grounds. This is a return fixture to Barnhall's visit to the Welsh valley outfit last Easter that produced some of the best rugby of last season from the young bulls. From the start the Barnhall side played with excellent composure against a talented Penygraig outfit that included several Cradiff Blues and Welsh youth players. The Barnhall forward pack again took control of the game and had the edge in the set piece winning terrific line out ball and taking scrum ball against the head on at least 6 occasions. The Welsh midfield were big and strong and kept running good lines looking a constant threat however the Barnhall backs produced some of the most flowing rugby of the season with the back 3 of Darragh O'Neill, Darren Finnegan and Eanna O'Muire counter attacking at every opportunity. The first try came from a free kick inside the Penygraig 22 where Padraig Beaty continued his recent scoring form with a pre-planned move straight off the training paddock, the kick went wide. Beaty scored again with a try from a line out and resulting driving maul before taking a bump and being replaced by Dave Warren for the second period. Penygraig had a converted try on the board themselves from some slick back play when the half time whistle went. The second half continued with some great expansive rugby from both teams Penygraig scoring a 2nd try and converting 2 penalties putting them in the lead 16 points to 10, Rob Murphy then scored a try out wide for Barnhall but again the kick was missed. With a few minutes left to play and the score of 16 points to 15 in favor of the visitors, the game looked to be lost until outside half Leo Quinn put over a peach of a drop goal to put the result 18 to 16 in favor of Barnhall.
This was a fitting way to end another successful season for this team of young Bulls. Thanks must go to Frankie Smith for his refereeing performance on the day and John Bagnell for allowing the pitches to be used.
After the game all involved retired to the Barnhall clubhouse where everyone enjoyed a wonderful meal. Thanks must go to Trish and Paul Murphy, Padraig Beaty snr. and of course George Furlong for their all their hard work in the kitchen. Then to finish off a good old fashioned sing song and some well deserved socializing was the order of the day!
Team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Padraig Beaty
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny
6) Rob Tiernan
7) Sean O'Mara
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Eanna O'Muire
12) Eamon Daly
13) Rob Murphy
14) Darren Finnegan
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Dave Warren
18) John Taylor
19) Mark Gleeson
20) Flan Brennan
21) Vinnie Ennis
22) Tom Mclorey
Under 18's 3rd May 2005
Metro Cup Final : Barnhall 27 Clontarf 7
Barnhall picked themselves up from Saturdays disappointment to gain
victory against Clontarf in the Metropolitan Cup final played at the
Iveagh grounds May 2nd. The Barnhall side were again in fine form on a very warm evening in Crumlin. Brian Kenny and his men started in a very determined way playing clever rugby and pushing Clontarf deep into their own half. The forwards took what has become a trade mark lineout catch and drive and managed to get an early converted score on the boards, touched down by Alan O'Reilly and kicked by Leo Quinn. Rob Murphy was next up with a well judged drop goal. Prominent with his running lines was Eamon Daly who went on to score a beautiful converted touchdown under the posts early in the second half. Clontarf came back into the game with a converted try of their own after the Bulls seemed to relax a
little mid-way through the second period. However it was the Big
Barnhall forwards that had the last say with a final touchdown by Sam
Hare, again from a lineout catch and drive to make a final score of 27
points to 7. This was a complete performance for Barnhall who were
deserved winners of the silverware on the night.
Last game of the Season for the Bulls is against Penygraig on Saturday 5th May at Maynooth University grounds 2pm KO.
Team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Dave Warren
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Al O'reilly
5) Brian Kenny
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Eanna O'Muire
12) Eamon Daly
13) Rob Murphy
14) Eamon Drumm
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Vinny Ennis
18) Darren Finegan
19) John Taylor
20) Mark Gleeson
21) Flan Brennan
22) Tom Mclorey
Barnhall U14s KEEP THE BEST WINE TILL LAST
Barnhall 46 Bective 17
Was it the good weather? Was it the honour of playing on probably Ireland's second most desirable pitch after Lansdowne Road i.e. the Leinster H.Q. at Donnybrook? ( I ASSUME Thomond park wouldn't rate above it) Was it the team smarting from a semi-final defeat to Edenderry the weekend before? Or was it because the opposition was a Dublin 4 team (Bective) and it was the last outing of the season? Whatever the reason and perhaps a combination of all, this was certainly a team that was on song.
The Donnybrook turf (sand?) was in very surprisingly good condition and after togging out in the same dressing room where famous names, such as O Driscoll Brennan Darcy Burke etc.did in the past, Barnhall were really up for this one.
With only just 15 players present at the early kick off Barnhall were undeterred and after about five minutes first try went to flanker Brian Du Toit from some open play inside the Bective 22 . Barnhall were soon up on the Bective line again and after some great team mauling Emmet Quinn the u13 hooker picked and weaved his way through 7 meters of much bigger forwards to ground for the second. This was a culmination of great support driving from the Barnhall pack which was a characteristic throughout the game.
Two more followed from Mick Wade and Du Toit, the latter converted by Lee Kearns, who had left his normally infallible kicking boots behind, but eventually on 25 minutes Bective managed to get on the score sheet and they followed up with a second just before half time leaving the score 22-12 at the whistle.
After the restart Bective came more into it with another try and with the score at 22-17 things were getting a bit edgy but Barnhall brought on their big guns and one of them Craig Mulalley made a great bullocking run from the Bective 22 fended off 3 tackles and carried 2 more players with him to ground at arms length a la Gerry Mc Loughlin for those old enough to remember
A feature of Barnhalls play all day had been Lee Kearns' long kicks deep into Bective territory and one of these clearance kicks from Barnhalls 22 was gathered close to the touchline at the half way mark by winger Denis Stewart who left his opposite number for dead and managed to stay ahead of the remaining pursuing backs all the way to the posts.
In fact Stewart was also to get the next one when scrum half Neal Harrison distributed ball on the blind side from a scrum. Barnhall scrummaging had been very solid even with two under 13s Dewi Harrison and Emmet Quinn in the front row and quite a few were won against the head.
Barnhall's final nail was driven into the Bective coffin when captain Tom Mc Gurk picked from the base of a ruck 5 meters out and 10 meters from the touch line, went blind side and battered his way over the line for a fine try which was converted by Kearns from the extra wide touchline.
Final Score Barnhall 46 Bective 17
This was a very enjoyable end to the 2006/2007 season, as all posed in the sunshine for the supporters to take photographs in front of the of the L.B.R.F.U stand.
Many thanks to all coaches, parents and supporters.
15)Eoin Hayes
14)Darragh McGee
13)Ryan Grace
12)Mick Wade
11)Denis Stewart
10)Lee Kearns
9)Neal Harrison
8)Peter Flynn
7)Tom McGuirk (cpt)
6)Brian Du Toit
5)Stephen Carroll
4)Liam Banks
3)Dewi Harrison
2)Emmet Quinn
1)Thomas Creighton
subs:
Sean Guiney for Darragh Mc Gee
Eric Mulhall for Eoin Hayes
Mark Guiney for Stephen Carroll
Craig Mulalley for Peter Flynn
injured : David Morris Smyth
Scorers:
DU TOIT 2T
QUINN 1T
MULALLEY 1T
MCGUIRK 1T (cpt)
STEWART 2T
WADE 1T
KEARNS 2C
Update for U18's 28th April:
Barnhall 20 Naas 21
28th of April 2007
In the Leinster cup final, held at North Kildare on Saturday 28th April Barnhall U18's lost 20 points to 21 to Naas.
This was the best performance of the year for the young bulls, who can be extremely proud of their display on the day. The game was well attended by Barnhall and Naas supporters that certainly got their money's woth of excitement and thrills and cheered both sides right to the end of the match.
The young bulls started very strongly and were first to score from a well worked line out and driving maul resulting in Padraig Beaty getting his first try of the day, Leo Quinn stepped up and converted. Naas scored next with a penalty kick after some Barnhall indiscipline just outside their own 22. The scoring continued when Leo Quinn replied with a drop goal for Barnhall and Naas scoring a 2nd penalty that was to prove crucial at the end of the game, missed at the first attempt but then re-taken at the referee's instruction due to a Barnhall player being in contact with the upright. The half time score was 10 points to 6 in favor of Barnhall. Both sides working hard in attack and defense however Barnhall looked by far the most dangerous side at the half way mark. The young Bulls were playing a complete game with the forwards providing a strong platform and the backs running some great lines and unfortunate not to score on 2 occasions.
The second half started with the blues pack in control, winning scrums against the head at will, the back line defending aggressively and attacking at every opportunity. The 2nd Barnhall try was not long coming. Once in good field position the pack took good clean lineout ball and the driving maul again proved decisive with Padraig Beaty scoring his 2nd try of the day, this time un-converted. Naas responded with their 3rd successful penalty kick at goal and then a try of their own from a line out that went unconverted. Barnhall responded with more well worked field position and scored a 3rd touchdown, again off a driving maul, this time the scorer was Alan O'Reiley, the conversion was unsuccessful. With the score at 20 points to 14 the game looked to be decided, however in the 11th minute of added time Naas finally managed to break the Barnhall defense with a well worked back line move that left an easy conversion and grasped victory with the last movement of the game.
Congratulations must go out to Naas on their victory and their very successful season.
Next up for the Young Bulls is a Metropolitan Area Cup Final on Wednesday 2nd May against Clontarf, at the Guinness pitch the Iveagh Grounds and a 7pm KO.
Team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Padraig Beatty
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Al O'reilly
5) Brian Kenny
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Eanna O'Muire
12) Eamon Daly
13) Rob Murphy
14) Eamon Drumm
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Dave Warren
18) Darren Finegan
19) John Taylor
20) Mark Gleeson
21) Flan Brennan
22) Tom Mclorey
Update for U18's Saturday 21st April 2007:
Guinness 16 Barnhall 18 Metro cup Semi Final
On Saturday 21st April Barnhall U18's played Guinness at Guinness home ground, The Iveagh Fields, in the Metropolitan Cup semi final. In a game where Barnhall were forced to relinquish home advantage due to their own pitches being closed, the U18's showed real character to win a fiercely contested semi final match. The big Guinness side were determined to push Barnhall all the way and looked to have done enough when at half time the score was 6 points to 3 in favor of Guinness, and then early in 2nd half scored a well worked try, and converted, to make the score 13 points to 3. With 17 minutes left on the clock Barnhall outside half Leo Quinn pulled back 3 points with a well struck penalty out wide on the Guinness 22 meter line to give Barnhall a glimmer of a chance. That was the spark that inspired the fight back, within another 5 minutes, after some determined forward play the Barnhall side found themselves with a lineout in the Guinness 22. A fine forward drive led to Sean O'Mara breaking free and scoring a well deserved touchdown, and again Leo Quinn converted. Now with around 5 minutes left to play the score was 13 a piece and some indiscipline left Guinness with a penalty kick at goal which they gratefully accepted. It looked like that was the straw to break the Barnhall hearts but showing amazing character and determination Barnhall worked the ball back into the Guinness red zone, where after some more sterling work by the Barnhall pack, John Taylor broke free to score another touchdown making the score 18 points to 16 in favor of Barnhall, the conversion went wide but Barnhall had done enough to win a classic semi final match. It now looks like the Metro Cup final will be played on Wednesday the 2nd May against Clontarf, venue TBC.
Next up Brian Kenny and his team will play Naas in the Leinster Cup Final at North Kildare, Saturday 28th April, KO 2pm..
Team against Guinness:
1) Sam Hare
2) Padraig Beatty
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Al O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Eanna O'Muire
12) Eamon Daly
13) Rob Murphy
14) Eamon Drumm
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Darren Finnegan
18) Dave Warren
19) Flan Brennan
20) Mark Gleeson
21) John Taylor
22) Tom Mclorey
Great performances by Barnhall UNDER 16s,
runners-up at the annual Gulliver's Travel Tournament.
18th of April 2007
By Sean Molloy
Hosted annually in the Iveagh Grounds, this international invitation tournament is becoming a showpiece for high quality youth rugby.
Competition is always very stiff with the strongest of teams coming over from the U.K. to compete along with a number of Irish teams. This year 13 teams competed.
Our pedigree is good in this tough tournament with last years U-16s winning the plate.
High ambitions this year prompted an even higher result as Barnhall were second in the competition as Cup runners up.
The first day of competition was a treat for all concerned with glorious sunshine and champagne rugby.
First match was against Burton RFC, a very strong outfit from England. Barnhall looked under a lot of pressure and were defending their own line for what seemed an age, but grinding out hard yards, they clawed their way back into their opponent's territory for the remainder of the 1 st half. The deadlock seemed like it was set for a draw with Burton showing huge physical strength and the young Bulls displaying fast open rugby with fantastic handling skills and superb continuity. With only minutes on the clock remaining, a quick succession of rucks on the left of the field led Barnhall to sniffing distance of the line. Fast ball from Dermot Feeney from the ruck put Joe Taylor in space, committing two defenders, the off load went to Derek Whiston with an overlap and a quick pass to Niall Cullen put Barnhall in the corner for the vital score – game over. 7-0.
The second match was against a remarkably huge Clondalkin side. This looked a physical mismatch from the start but the Blue's tactics of 15 man continuity paid off. Running the west Dublin side ragged with phases of 20+ passes at a time. It was exactly what the coaches had been asking for. Captain Ben Moore was particularly prolific in this match and he seemed to be involved in every phase of play on every inch of the pitch. Several tries later it was full time. An exhausted Barnhall looked very, very happy.
Third match was against Guinness, who like Clondalkin, looked to out muscle the Blues, putting out a physically strong team. A repeat of the second match then took place. Superb open rugby again. The first try came from a succession of countless passes and quick off-loads which led to prop Gavin Egan touching down in the corner. Next try was created by the other prop Peter Hall giving a reverse pass (worthy of the hands of Eoin Burke) to put Barnhall in the opposite corner for a try. When your props are passing like backs or running like back row, the rugby is truly champagne and the crowd drank it in gallons as more scores mounted for another victory.
Fourth match was against the eventual winners Lincoln RFC. In a tight fought match, the English team were winners with a penalty from in front of the posts in the final seconds of the game to win 10-7. The result was somewhat an irrelevance as bar a massive defeat in the next match, both teams were already due to meet in the final.
Next up was a game against Suttonians who needed to beat Barnhall by 30 points to take the Blues spot in the Cup Final. This was never to happen. All Barnhall's squad took part in this game, with previous subs having a full game. More flowing rugby and another win.
The 2 hour wait for the final was a long two hours as Barnhall were anxious for another chance against Linclon. The final match was a credit to both clubs as some excellent rugby was played by two completely even teams. Barnhall took the lead in the first half with Dermot Feeney at outside centre touching down in the right hand corner. The unconverted try was not enough as in the second half, Lincoln managed to get a score close to the post and their conversion was enough to win the game. Outstanding in the final was Peter Du Toit who made a massive impact at scrum half.
The Barnhall players were devastated to lose as they all knew they had truly played great rugby and would have deserved to be victors. Praise should be given in abundance at their commitment and style of play and also that they were the first ever Irish team to reach the final of this tough competition.
All boys played extremely well but mention should go to Ben Moore for his outstanding work rate, Dermot Feeney for using his frightening pace so well, prop Gavin Egan for playing like a flanker in the loose, Eddie Delahunt for his tenacity in defence & Ray Flynn for his tackling and tactical play at 10.
A dead-eye kicker is invaluable to any team and Joseph Taylor put on an amazing display, converting 15 out of 16 place kicks, many of them from the touch-line.
Under 14's Update
17 April 2007
Last February, Barnhall u14s were knocked out of the Leinster cup in the 1st round to tournament favourites Navan. Consequently Barnhall travelled to Rathoath to play their Leinster plate quarter final on Thursday night last, having bypassed Clontarf and North Kildare in the first two rounds. The game kicked off with perfect rugby playing conditions at Ratoath's new grounds and clubhouse. Barnhall dominated most if not all of the possession of the game. The half time score was: Ratoath 0-77 Barnhall; high light of the half being Lee Kearns 10 out of 10 conversions . The low point was however where he sprained his thumb just before half time. The final score was Ratoath 0 Barnhall 115 as the referee blew early to end the home teams misery. Starting 15:
15)Eric Mulhall
14)Trippy Phillips
13)Fergal Conway
12)Mick Wade
11)Karl George
10)Lee Kearns
9)Neal Harrison
8)Ryan Grace
7)Tom McGuirk (cpt)
6)Craig Mulalley
5)Dave Morris
4)Thomas Creighton
3)Dewi Harrison
2)Emmet Quinn
1)David Mongey
subs Karl O Connor Denis Stewart Eoin Hayes
Try scorers: CONWAY 1T KEARNS 2 T 10C MULALLEY 2T SMITH 1T MCGUIRK T 4C (cpt) STEWART 1T GEORGE 1T MONGEY 1T PHILLIPS 1T WADE 4
T
This means barnhall are through to the semi final against Edenderry on Saturday next 21/4 kick off at 11:00am, we need your support!!!
Update for U18's 15th April:
Barnhall 12 Mullingar 11
The under 18's progressed to the Leinster Cup final on Sunday 15th April at North Kildare with a tightly contested semi final win 12 points to 11 against Mullingar.
Barnhall were fast out of the blocks and some excellent forward play led to the first converted try, scored by Ray Dufficy and converted by Leo Quinn. Mullingar replied with an unconverted try of their own in the second quarter, and then a penalty, leading into half time with a score line of 8 points to 7 in favor of Mullingar.
Early In the 2nd half, after some indiscipline by Barnhall, a second penalty gave Mullingar an 11 points to 7 lead. With the clock running down some fresh legs were introduced to play by Barnhall, and they made all the difference, with 3 minutes left on the clock and some more powerful forward drives, Alan O'Reilley broke free to score a tremendous touchdown out wide that finally broke the Mullingar spirit. The try went un-converted but left a final score of 12 points to 11 in favor of Barnhall.
Brian Kenny and his charges can be well proud of this outstanding performance and they can now look forward to a Leinster cup final showdown with Naas on April 28th venue TBD.
They will however be in action next Saturday, the 21st April, against Guinness in another semi final, this time the Metropollitan cup, to be played at the Iveagh Fields.
The team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Padraig Beatty
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Al O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Mark Gleeson
12) Eamon Daly
13) Rob Murphy
14) Eamon Drumm
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Darren Finnegan
18) Dave Warren
19) Flan Brennan
20) Eanna O'Muire
21) John Taylor
22) Vinny Ennis Update for U18's 31st March 2007
Barnhall 20 Tullamore 16
Barnhall U18's played the quarter final of the Leinster Cup competition on Saturday against Tullamore at Barnhall. In a very competitive match Barnhall proved to be too strong for a very determined Tullamore side having arrived at Barnhall with some impressive form behind them including a recent victory over the Leinster League finalists Dundalk.
On the day it was the power of the Barnhall pack that took control, with another impressive performance from Brian Kenny and his forwards, paving the way to a deserved win. The scores on the day came from Eamon Daly with 2 well worked tries in the middle of the park, Sean O'Mara touching down from a driving maul and Leo Quinn with a drop goal and a conversion.
While this was not champagne rugby the Barnhall side can be proud of their efforts and look forward to well deserved semi-final against North Kildare or Mullingar.
Team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Padraig Beaty
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Mark Gleeson
12) Eamon Daly
13) Darren Finnigan
14) Eanna O'Muire
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Rob Murphy
18) Dave Warren
19) John Taylor
20) Tom McLorey
21) Flan Brennan
Update on the Under 18's 26th of March 2007
The under 18's continued their winning ways this week end with a quarter final Metro cup win against Coolmine RFC at Coolmine. In a last minute re-shuffle to the back line, Padraig Beaty took over at centre from Eamon Daly, who had been called into the Irish youth squad on Saturday for a game against Terenure 20's. The re-shuffle in the back line meant the forward pack also had to be re-jigged with Sam Hare taking over dties as hooker, Ben Harrison moving to loose head prop and Chris Leavy taking the No. 8 spot vacated by Harrison.
The pack once again continued their recent good form and took the game to Coolmine from the start enjoying plenty of line out and scrummage possession and providing a solid base to play good running rugby from. Coolmine for their part played well, a side that included many Castlenock school players but were ultimately out muscled by Brian Kenny and his side.
The final score was 46 points to 7 in favor of Barnhall with 7 tries being scored, 4 conversions and a penalty. It was a pleasing win and all 22 Barnhall players got some well deserved game time.
Team:
1) Ben Harrison
2) Sam Hare
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Al O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Chris Leavy
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Mark Gleeson
12) Padraig Beaty
13) Darren Finnigan
14) Eanna O'Muire
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Dave Warren
18) Flan Brennan
19) Rob Murphy
20) John Taylor
21) Tom Mclorey
22) Vinnie Ennis
Next up for the young Bulls is Tullamore in the Leinster cup at Barnhall March 31st KO TBD.
Update on the Under 18's 21st of March 2007
The Barnhall U18's continued their drive towards the Leinster cup this week end, March 18th, with a 2nd round fixture against the Leinster League first division champions Guinness, away at Guinness home ground the Iveay Fields. This is the 3rd time the teams have met this year, 1 win a piece, but the first time in a competitive tournament, and with both sides fielding full strength teams it was an exciting prospect.
The big Guinness team came out with high expectations of a win, however Brian Kenny and his Barnhall side were up for the occasion. Barnhall had the advantage of the slope of the pitch and the elements in the first half and aimed to clock up a significant lead before the turn around as the conditions were sure to play a big part in the 2nd half. It was a keenly fought first 35 minutes with Barnhall scoring 3 tries and 2 conversions, however Guinness were still in the game due to 3 penalties giving them 9 points, half time score 19 points to 9.
The 2nd half promised to be a challenging prospect for Barnhall, against the significant slope of the pitch, a very strong wind and the deteriorating weather conditions, snow in March !!!!
The young bulls took up the challenge, the pack took control with a strong lineout and scrummage performance providing the back line with some quality possession. Leo Quinn kicked well and put the forwards in good field positions from where they took full advantage of their increasing dominance to give an attacking foundation and ultimately running in a further 5 tries. Guinness had the last say with another penalty, they completed a set move and came up with a score in the final action of the game leaving the final score 39 to 14 in favour of Barnhall.
The team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Padraig Beatty
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Al O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Mark Gleeson
12) Eamon Daly
13) Darren Finnegan
14) John Taylor
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Chris Leavy
18) Dave Warren
19) Flan Brennan
20) Eanna O'Muire
21) Tom McLorey
The next round is Saturday 24th March, the 18's will be playing against Tullamore at Barnhall KO @2pm.
Update on the Under 18's 13th of March 2007
Since exiting the Leinster League in controversial circumstances at the semi final stage mid January, 6_0 to Dundalk, the Barnhall under 18's have been quietly preparing and building eagerly for the start of their Leinster Cup (Culliton cup) and Metropolitan Area Cup campaign. In preparation the young bulls have kept themselves busy and clocked up some impressive wins in friendly fixtures against Guinness, Greystones and Edenderry respectively.
The Leinster Cup campaign started in earnest Saturday March 3rd, against the Leinster League division 1 finalist Malahide. The Barnhall side went out determined to set down a marker and make a positive start, which they did resoundingly, putting in one of their best performances of the season. A score line of 60 points to 0 reflected the intensity and pace with which the game was played. The Barnhall pack were in control from the kick off, with a strong scrum and lineout, skipper Brian Kenny and his forwards never took their foot off the gas and provided the ideal platform for the impressive back line to attack off. There were 10 tries scored in total and 5 conversions. The performance was a perfect way to start the drive for success in the Culliton Cup and prepare for the encounters to come.
Team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Padraig Beaty
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Mark Gleeson
12) Eamon Daly
13) Darren Finnegan
14) Eanna O'Muire
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Dave Warren
17) Tony Bracken Kennedy
18) Flan Brennan
19) Tom McLorey
Next up for the U18's was the Metropolitan cup first fixture against De La Salle Palmerston in De La Salle on Sunday March 11th. De la Salle fancied their chances of a win and came out of the blocks quickly scoring a converted try in the first 5 minutes of the game after some shoddy Barnhall defense. This was however the last score of the game for De La Salle and Barnhall took control with another very strong forward performance giving a great platform for the backs to play off. Four Barnhall tries were scored during the course of the game, 1 for Sam Hare, 1 for Sean O'Mara, 1 for Ben Harrison and 1 for Eamon Daly. Leo Quinn converted 3 of the 4 tries resulting in a 26 – 7 score line in favor of Barnhall.
Team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Padraig Beaty
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) John Taylor
10) Leo Quinn
11) Mark Gleeson
12) Eamon Daly
13) Darren Finnegan
14) Rob Murphy
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Dave Warren
17) Tony Bracken Kennedy
18) Chris Leavy
19) Eamon Drummer
20) Flan Brennan
21) Tom McLorey
The next game for the young bulls is the 2nd round of the Culliton cup, Barnhall play Guinness away on March 18th with kick off at 1pm.
Edenderry 28 Barnhall 36
Barnhall Under 14's Away in Edenderry
Barnhall u14 travelled to Edenderry to fulfil an u14 friendly fixture. These two sides met a few months early, with barnhall wining 26-10 at home. The game kicked off in wet conditions Edenderry proved that they were up for this game from the off with barnhall being put under pressure. Barnhall settled down and got their first points on the board when captain tom McGuirk intercepting a loose Edenderry pass and ran from their 10 metre in for a try. Then Edenderry got themselves into the game with there Outhalf chipping over the barnhall defence to score a try. barnhall restarted and put Edenderry under pressure from their Outhalf clearance kick. Barnhall gained a lineout on the Edenderry 22 and the barnhall forwards mauled to Edenderry 5 metre from which captain tom McGuirk scored his 2nd try of the afternoon when he broke from the ruck 5 metres short from the Edenderry line. Lee Kearns converted. half time score line barnhall just in front 24-21. The 2nd half begun and barnhall got themselves together with the backs running good lines and barnhall winger Daragh Magee went over for a well worked try for Barnhall. Lee Kearns converted from an very difficult angle. Then another great try came from big barnhall 2nd row Dave Morris running straight lines to go over for a try with lee kerns converted. with 5 mins on the clock to go the game was still very tight on Edenderry never gave up and scored a try in the corner when their big no:8 drove at the barnhall defence to go over to leave it a nail biting finish the score was now 31-28.barnhall controlled the ball and were in Edenderry 22 when the ball went through the back line and captain tom McGuirk went over in the corner for a hat trick of trys to his name a great performance by the barnhall team.
Final Score: Edenderry 28 Barnhall 36
Full Back: Eric Mulhall
Winger: Daragh Magee
1st Centre: Fergal Conway
2nd
Centre: Sean Guiney
Winger: Paul Nalty
Outhalf: Lee Kearns 1t 3cons
Scrum Half: Neil Harrison
Prop: Luke Jackson
Hooker: Ryan grace
Prop: Thomas Creighton
Second Row: Stephen Carroll
Second Row: David Morris Smyth
1t Flanker: Craig Mulalley
no 8: Liam banks
2nd
Flanker: Thomas McGuirk
3T subs Eoin Hayes for Ryan Grace DEPLETED BARNHALL PUT ON VALIANT DISPLAY
Under 14's
Mainly due to flu and sickness Barnhall being nearly 10 players down could barley manage to field a team for the first round fixture against tournament favourites Navan . In fact when the score line read Barnhall 0 Navan 32 at half time it looked like it was going to be a very bad day at the office, however in true Barnhall 'never say die' attitude they managed to keep Navan to just two tries in the second half while scoring one themselves and having another controversially disallowed for a double movement. Barnhall's try came from a continuous assault on the Navan line midway through the second half and as Navan scrambled a pass to their out half deep inside his goal line Thomas Mc Guirk blocked the clearance kick/knock-on, the ref played advantage and Thomas grounded the ball at the outhalf's feet. Barnhalls other 'almost' try came a little earlier in the second half when again Barnhall besieged the Navan line. Centre Michael Wade received the ball from a Barnhall ruck and maul about 15m in and 5m from the Navan line. He made great progress through the Navan back line, grounded the ball 1/2 meter short and used his momentum to carry over but the delay between the first and second grounding was judged by the referee to be that little bit too long. Barnhall used three under 13's to assist on the day Dewi Harrison and Emmet Quinn in the front row and Sean Hayes at fullback. All acquitted themselves well with the first two winning a lot of 'hard yards' close in and Sean sustaining a knee injury while bravely saving a certain try. The packs were reasonably evenly matched but Navan backs had more pace which resulted in the try count being high. Comments by spectators on both sides said the final score did not reflect the difference between the teams. Barnhall would love to have another go with the full squad. Barnhall now going into the Leinster u14 Plate competition as well having fixtures with visiting Welsh and English touring teams FINAL SCORE BARNHALL 5 NAVAN 44
Full Back Sean Hayes
Winger Eoin Hayes
Centre 'Trippy' Phillips
Centre Michael Wade
Winger Paul Devlin
Outhalf Sean Guiney
Scrum Half Neil Harrison
Prop Dewi Harrison
Hooker Emmet Quinn
Prop Thomas Creighton
Second Row Stephen Carroll
Second Row David Morris Smyth
Flanker David Mongey
no 8 Craig Mulalley
Flanker Thomas McGuirk 1T
Ryan Grace for Sean Hayes
Barnhall u 14's through to Leinster quarter finals
Barnhall Under 14's
Sunday 21st of Jan 2007
Ray O'meara Reports
Dundalk travelled to play Barnhall u 14S on a rain sodden first pitch which had a lot of surface water from an almighty downpour just before the kick off. However for the duration of the game the stiff breeze and occasional sunshine made good rugby possible. From the off Barnhall dictated the game with most of the play in the Dundalk half. After 10 minutes Daragh McGee sprinted past his opposite number to score in the right hand corner. Lee Kearns converted a very difficult kick from the 22 side line in a swirling breeze. After a great passing movement from a maul on the half way Barnhall with strong runners and timely off- loading allowed Daragh to make it 5 meters short of the Dundalk line. From the resulting ruck Dundalk were awarded the scrum but David Mongey made a strike against the head and quick service from scrumhalf Eric Mulhall and Sean Guiney allowed centre Michael Wade to attack the Dundalk line at pace and he scored just right of the posts. Lee Kearns again converted in a strong cross wind. > Dundalk then replied just short of half time after a magnificent tackle from David Morris Smyth on a Dundalk breakaway winger which the referee judged it to be a dangerous move. From the ensuing penalty Dundalk put continuous pressure on the Barnhall line and scored from a ruck and maul situation under the posts which they easily converted thus making it 14-7 Barnhall could easily have had a couple more except that a some passes went short of their intended free player at crucial moments. However the reward came when Dundalk made a badly judged clearance inside their 22. Barnhall caught and from the resulting open play Fergal Conway collected his usual try per game by jinking inside the centres who were expecting him to pass out the line. Lee converted again. Barnhall's 4th try came from an interception from Daragh on the Dundalk 10 meter line, he offloaded to Michael Wade who was caught about 15m short of the try line in front of the posts. He could have passed to a number of supporting players but made sure of the try by passing wide on the left to Trippy Craig Phillips who in turn passed to Fergal Conway who scored in the left corner. The conversion was just under the posts. Barnhalls final try came from Trippy again from a cohesive scrum near the Dundalk 22. > Dundalk did manage a final try but Barnhall had taken the foot off the gas at that stage.
Next round quarter final is away to Tullamore next sat 27th Jan
Final SCORE BARNHALL 31 DUNDALK 14
Full Back Carl George
Wing Darragh Mc Gee
Centre Michael Wade 1T
Centre Lee Kearns 3 CONS
Wing Craig Trippy Phillips 1 T
Out Half Sean Guiney
Scrum Half Neal Harrison
Tight head Khaya Mealumba
Hooker David Mongey
Loose Head Thomas Creighton
Second Row David Morris-Smyth
Flanker Thomas Mc Gurk
No 8 Craig Mulalley
Flanker Fergal Conway
subs Paul Devlin for Darragh McGee
Ryan Grace for Eric Mulhall
Peter Flynn for Carl George
BARNHALL KEEP PORTARLINGTON SCORELESS IN LEINSTER LEAGUE CLASH
Barnhall Under 14's
Leinster League
Sunday 15/1/07
On Sunday the 14 Jan Barnhall u 14s travelled to Portarlington to decide who will play next Dundalk in the Leinster u14 league. The weather was crisp and sunny and the pitch was also in good condition. From the off Barnhall put considerable pressure on the Portarlington defence and were rewarded with a try after 5 minutes when Craig Mulalley made the try line after a 5 meter maul which Lee Kearns converted easily. For the remainder of the first half possession was 50/50 with neither team scoring. 7 minutes into the second half Barnhall were awarded a penalty just on the half way mark. Thomas McGurk surprised the opposition by taking it quickly and ran at a diagonal angle; he then threw a long looping pass to right winger Craig Trippy Phillips who sprinted outside his opposite winger and broke through 2 tackles for a terrific score. Barnhall's 3rd try came from the opposite wing with Daragh Mc Gee outpacing his opposite number to score on the left.. Barnhalls next score came from a similar move towards the right but this time Portarlington had it covered, However quick service from Neal Harrison and Sean Guiney at half back got the back line moving and Fergal Conway scored in the opposite corner.. This was a great squad team effort with no player showing any weakness or lack of commitment, and especially the subs worked hard with Eoin Hayes in particular pulling off a certain great tackle to keep Portarlington scoreless at the end and deny them that consolation score. Final score Barnhall 24 Portarlington 0
Full Back Eric Mulhall
Wing Darragh Mc Gee
Centre Michael Wade
Centre Lee Kearns 2 CONS
Wing Craig Trippy Phillips 1 T
Out Half Sean Guiney
Scrum Half Neal Harrison
Tight head Carl O'Connor
Hooker David Mongey
Loose Head Thomas Creighton
Second Row David Morris-Smyth
Flanker Thomas Mc Gurk
Flanker Fergal Conway
No 8 Craig Mulalley
subs Eoin Hayes for Darragh McGee, Ryan Grace for Thomas Creighton, Paul Devlin for Neal Harrison
Barnhall 16's Win in Iveagh Grounds
Under 16s
Barnhall 44 – Guinness 12
Report by Sean Molloy
In gale force winds at a stormy Iveagh Grounds, Barnhall's under 16s gave a 1 st half demonstration of top class 15 man rugby.
With both teams missing a lot of players through holidays & injuries, it was agreed prior to the match that each side could field up to three players from the U18s squad to boost numbers.
With the wind to their backs, the Blue Bulls pack dominated from the whistle and pinned the home team in their own 22 for 7 minutes until a score came. With sustained pressure on the home side's line, scrum half Ray Flynn came off a ruck and side stepped over the line for the game's first score.
12 minutes played and a Guinness line out on the half way was stolen by the dominant Peter Hall. Quick ball to the backs by Flynn and out half, Joe Taylor exploited the space between the back lines and carved through the defence, off-loading to Eamonn Daly who was on his shoulder to sprint through to get the best try of the match. A better try could not be seen at any level of rugby with perfect handling from line-out to touch-down. A conversion by Taylor put the blues 12-0 up.
Barnhall went straight back in to Guinness territory and got to within sniffing distance of the line. Several attacks brought a ruck on the line and Gearoid Conway fed the ball to Kevin White who crashed over to score. This was great reward for White who has been side-lined since September with a broken thumb and ligament damage and was itching for his first start.
It was not long before the now dominant Blue's pack took total control of the game and further quick ball from Flynn to John Taylor brought another try as he went 40 metres to score. Barnhall were now on fire and were playing “total rugby”. A rare piece of possession was gained by Guinness and they kicked deep at Barnhall but winger Mark Gleeson counter attacked at pace and a sweet pass to Daly just short of the line saw the centre get his second try. Another conversion and the Blues led 29-0.
Guinness were now really struggling and again the next piece of possession they got was turned over from a thumping Barnhall tackle and Eddie Delahunt went 40metres for his first try of the game.
The first half ended painfully for Guinness as Rian Glynn caught the ball from the re-start and out paced the defence to score. Half time, 39–0.
The second half gave Guinness the wind at their backs and for over ten minutes they camped in the Blue's 22. Barnhall had a line-out 5m out and the Gods were on Guiness' side as a gale blew up into the Blue's hookers face. Barnhall's only lost line out of the game and Guinness got their just reward with a well worked score. The next ten minutes was again spent with Barnhall defending a consistent barrage of attacks on the blue's line. The defence could only hold up so long and another Guinness try came.
This was enough to convince the Blue's to up their effort and get into the Guinness end of the pitch. This they managed to do and the next 10 minutes of play was even for both sides. With a few minutes remaining, a Barnhall scrum was won and the ball moved wide to the left. Two quick rucks and Delahunt got his second try.
This ended the game on a nice note for the deserving Barnhall victors.
Barnhall team:
1. Gavin Egan
2. Kevin White
3. Conor O'Melia
4. Peter Hall
5. Rian Glynn
6. Gearoid Conway
7. John Taylor (U18)
8. Ben Moore (capt.)
9. Ray Flynn
10. Joe Taylor
11. Mark Gleeson (U18)
12. Eamonn Daly (U18)
13. Eddie Delahunt
14. Andy Allen
15. Jeff El-Damasi
Subs:
Stephen Hynes
Dermot Feeney
Barnhall 15 Metropolitan Rep Team 7
Under 18's 4th of Jan 2007 A re-shuffled Barnhall U18 team met up with a Metropolitan representative team in NUI Maynooth on Jan 4th. There were a number of Barnhall players included in the Metro team, Alan Oreilly, Mark Gleeson and Eamon Daly from the 18's squad,with Joe Taylor, Ray Flynn, Dermot Feeney, Gavin Egan, Ben Moore, Kevin White and Rian Glynn from the 16's squad.
In a tightly fought game the Barnhall side came out winners with a 15 points to 7 victory. Chris Leavy, Leo Quinn and Rob Tiernan scored the unconverted touch downs for Barnhall, while Alan O'reilly (a Barnhall u18's player) scored the converted touch down for the Metro side.
The Metro team is a first step to representative honours with Leinster and hopefully this crop of Barnhall youngstere will emulate the current contingent of 7 players from Barnhall to reach the Leinster youth squads this year.
The Barnhall team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Tony Bracken Kennedy
3) Peter Murphy
4) Brian Kenny
5) Chris Leavy
6) Rob Tiernan
7) Darren Finnigan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Tom McLorey
12) Padraig Beatty
13) Rob Murphy
14) John Taylor
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Gearoid Conway
17) Connor O'melia
18) Eddie Delahunty
Barnhall 18's Win in Iveagh Grounds
Barnhall 6 Guinness 5
Saturday 23rd of December 2006
Under 18's Friendly
On Saturday Dec 23rd the U18's played Guinness in a friendly fixture. The game had to be relocated form Barnhall due to frozen pitches and was eventually played at the Ivy Fields, Guinness home pitch. This was a chance for the young bulls to avenge a pre-season loss to Guinness which was played without the 7 man Barnhall contingent who were on representative duty with Leinster.
The result was a 6 _ 5 victory for Barnhall in probably the most physical game that has been played this year. 2 penalties scored by Leo Quinn versus 1 unconverted try for Guinness. A pleasing result and well earned where both sides gave it everything. This game provided a good end to 2006 for the young bulls. Team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Dave Warren
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Al O'reilly
5) Sean O'Mara
6) Chris Leavy
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison (capt)
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Mark Gleeson
12) Eamon Daly
13) Padraig Beatty
14) Rob Murphy
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Tom Mclory
18) Flan Brennan
BARNHALL JUST COULDN'T PULL IT OFF
Barnhall 17 Seapoint 19
Saturday 16th of December 2006
Under 14's
After a postponement again last week due to bad weather Barnhall travelled to Seapoint for another round of the Metro U 14 League. Even though Barnhall were well psyched up before the start Seapoint struck within the first minute with a converted try. Play swung both ways with a very competitive battle up front from two strong sets of forwards. Barnhall then replied with a try from Fergal Conway who burst through a couple of missed tackles on the blind side and touched down in front of the posts after 10 minutes. Lee Kearns converted.
Seapoint then replied when their bulky prop got a clear run around the open side of a maul on the 22 when Barnhall had been expecting a break on the blind side; Again they converted. Fergal Conway then replied with a controversial try similar to Shane Horgan against England last year. However the ref, after consulting with the linesman, raised his arm for a try.
Just before halftime Seapoint scored another demoralising try leaving it 19 12 at half time.
Most of he second half was played in the Seapoint half of the pitch and on numerous occasions Barnhall were almost through both Michael Wade and Brian du Toit were within inches of touching down. Barnhall pressure eventually gave just rewards with a try from Lee Kearns who burst through 3 tackles; however the conversion was missed. Seapoints good defence held out to give them a narrow victory. Spectators on both sides were full of praise for the entertaining close fought game and some even enjoyed it more than some of the recent Heineken cup games.
Final score Barnhall 17 Seapoint 19
Full Back Paul Nalty
Wing Denis Stewart
Centre Craig Trippy Phillips
Centre Lee Kearns 1 TRY 1 CONS
Wing Ryan Farrell
Out Half Sean Guiney
Scrum Half Neal Harrison
Tight head Carl O'Connor
Hooker David Mongey
Loose Head Stephen Carroll
Second Row David Morris-Smyth
Second Row Thomas McGurk
Flanker Brian Du Toit
No 8 Michael Wade
Flanker Fergal Conway 2 T
subs Eoin Hayes for Ryan Farrell
Peter Flynn for Denis Stewart
Niall O Connor for Stephen Carroll
Barnhall 13 Mullingar 0 Sat 16th Dec 2006
Quarter final U18's Leinster League
Barnhall U18's , lead by skipper Brian Kenny, moved into a semi final berth of the U18 Leinster League on Saturday with a fine win against Mullingar at home in Parsonstown. The visitors started very well and pressurized the Barnhall side constantly for the first 10 minutes in an attempt to get some early scores. However the Blues defense again stood up to the task and kept the visitors scoreless. It was a war of attrition and slowly but surely the Barnhall pack took control of the game with a good set piece strong driving mauls and good quick rucking. The first score came towards the end of the first half after the pack had worked hard to gain a good attacking field position just on the visitors 22 and Colin Smyth spun the ball wide across the back line for full back Darragh O'Neill to touch down, the try went unconverted. The second half provided more of the same with Barnhall forwards now in control getting into the visitors 22 where Mullingar commited an offside infringement and Leo Quinn took the 3 points on offer. With an 8 _ 0 lead the young Bulls continued their good work and from a line out prop forward Sam Hare finished off a well controlled driving maul with the second touch down of the day to give a final score of 13 _ 0.
The players and coaches can be well pleased with this performance going into the festive season and look forward to the semi final to played in the New Year. Team:
1) Sam Hare
2) Dave Warren
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (Capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Darren Finnigan
12) Eamon Daly
13) Padraig Beatty
14) Eanna O'Muire
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Chris Leavy
18) Flan Brennan
19) Rob Murphy
20) Tom McLorey
21) Mark Gleeson
Barnhall 22 Kilkenny 5
Report for U18's Sat Dec 9th 2006
Barnhall U18's continued their winning ways with a convincing all round performance against a determined and well fancied Kilkenny side. The barnhall forward pack were in charge from the start of the game dominating set piece where the lineout went particularly well. The Barnhall jumpers, Alan O'Reilly, Brian Kenny and Sean O'Mara were always in control and provided good clean ball for the 2 tries scored by hooker Dave Warren from resulting driving mauls.
The Kilkenny back line looked threatening throughout but were well marshalled by the experienced Bulls three quarters, where defence was once again solid. A mistake in the bulls 22 did allow Kilkenny to score a try from broken play and will give the Barnhall coaches JJ Kelly and Rob Harrison food for thought over the next week.
Barnhall quickly returned to form and scored a 3rd try from a sustained period of attack with prop Ray Dufficy being driven over the line supported by Ben Harrison. Leo quinn continued his scoring tally at number 10 with 2 conversions and a penalty.
Prominent for Kilkenny was an ex Barnhall player, Joseph Kennedy, who took the opportunity to catch up with old fiends both on and off the pitch.
This result puts Barnhall in joint first position, with Naas RFC, of the Southern area premier division going into the play-offs of the Leinster League competition and ensures a home fixture against either Mullingar or Boyne from the Nothern area next w/e the 15th Dec.
Team on 9th Dec:
1) Sam Hare
2) Dave Warren
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt.)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) John Taylor
12) Eamon Daly
13) Padraig Beatty
14) Eanna O'Muire
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Rob Murphy
18) Mark Gleeson
19) Darren Finnigan
20) Flan Brennan
Wicklow 0 Barnhall 20
Under 18's
Sat 2nd of Dec
The under 18s played away to Wicklow this weekend in the penultimate game of their Leinster League campaign prior to the competition progressing to the play off stages. With a convincing return to form, Barnhall won a hard fought contest resulting in a well deserved 20 points to nil victory.
It was a good all round performance from the Bulls with the forwards dominating the set piece and providing a solid platform to allow the back line to run some excellent lines and angles. Coach JJ Kelly was especially pleased with the strength of the Barnhall defense, reflected by a clean sheet against some determined Wicklow play. In the course of the game all players on the panel were used getting some much deserved game time.
The scorers on the day were Leo Quinn, who bagged 10 points with a try, conversion and drop goal, while Eamon Daly finished off 2 excellently worked tries. Prominent for Barnhall were Colin Smyth providing some great distribution and sniping runs from scrum half along with some very strong ball carrying from Ray Dufficy, Ben Harrison and Sam Hare.
Team :
1) Sam Hare
2) Dave Warren
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Rob Tiernan
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Eanna O'Muire
12) Eamon Daly
13) Padraig Beatty
14) John Taylor
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken-Kennedy
17) Flan Brennan
18) Mark Gleeson
Back to back wins in 5 days put Under 16s back on track Under 16's Sat 25th Nov
Having had far too many narrow defeats in the early season, fortunes seem to have turned for Barnhall's injury hit under 16s.
Last Saturday saw the young bulls beat a strong Kilkenny side in a close fought encounter that went right down to the wire. With no score at half time, the message from the Barnhall coach was to increase the intensity and pace as the match progressed, something the team had been failing to do recently. The young bulls showed great maturity in sticking to this task as Kilenny took the lead. But persistence paid off as Barnhall continually increased the pace of the game till the opposition cracked. Two superb tries from Tully & Feeny followed and Barnhall won 12 -5. The down side of this game was the loss of centre Conor O'Sullivan with a serious injury that left him hospitalised over the week end. Severe muscle and ligament damage to his hip will see him sidelined for a long time yet.
Wednesday night brought a friendly against Clane Under 17s. Although the older Clane forwards matched the Blues pack, when good ball was available to the Barnhall backs, their handling skills & pace was far too much for a struggling Clane side and the score became irrelevant after a half dozen Barnhall tries.
This Saturday, Barnhall face an away match to league leaders and Leinster favourites Wicklow who are beating most opponents by cricket scores.
BARNHALL SECURE BONUS POINT WITH 5 TRY BLITZ
Under 14's Sat 25th Nov
Ref MR T. Andrucetti (l.b.r.f.u.)
After a postponement last week due to bad weather Coolmine travelled to Barnhall for a 10 oc clock kick-off. The early start didn't deter the spirits of both teams and for the first 10 minutes Coolmine had the territorial advantage. However first blood went to Barnhall with a try on 12 minutes from Thomas McGurk and the conversion by Lee Kearns rebounded off the post. The next Barnhall try was from Trippy Craig Phillips after a well work back line movement. Coolmine were now beginning to wilt after putting up an initial resistance and two quick Barnhall tries followed when Thomas Mc Gurk had a lucky bounce from a kick ahead at the opposition 22 and walked in for an easy try. The 4th try was a great solo effort from the restart when David Morris Smyth gathered from his own 15 and used his strength and speed to cut through the Coolmine defence. Lee Kearns made a terrific conversion from the touchline 3 meters out side the 22.
After the break Barnhall didn't have it so easy as Coolmine piled on
the pressure and got a try after 5 minutes. Barnhall then used their
subs Craig Mulalley for Carl o' Connor and Eoin Hayes for Ryan
Farrell. However resilient hooker David Mongey pick up a shoulder
injury and was replaced by Carol o Connor. Coolmine continued with a
lot of pressure but against the run of play Michael wade busted
through the centre to put the match beyond any doubt for Barnhall lee
Kearns converted to leave the final score 29- 5
Final score Barnhall 29 Coolmine 5
Full Back Paul Nalty
Wing Darragh Mc Gee
Centre Craig Trippy Phillips 1 T
Centre Lee Kearns 2 CONS
Wing Ryan Farrell
Out Half Sean Guiney
Scrum Half Eric Mulhall
Tight head Carl O'Connor
Hooker David Mongey
Loose Head Ghaya Obitko
Second Row David Morris-Smyth
Flanker Thomas Mc Gurk 2 T
No 8 Michael Wade 1 T
Flanker Fergal Conway
subs Eoin Hayes for Ryan Farrell
Craig Mulalley fro Carl O Connor
Naas 15 Barnhall 5
Saturday the 18th of November 2006 (Under 18's)
By Sean Molloy
In a thrilling encounter at Naas RFC on Saturday, Barnhall U18's lost their first league match of the season 15 _ 5 to a well organized Naas unit. The game was a high paced encounter where both forward packs challenged each other throughout and fought hard to give their back lines a solid platform to play off in a "tit for tat" battle. With challenging weather conditions however, it was the Naas side that eventually won the encounter displaying some excellent wide back play outscoring Barnhall 3 tries to 1. Neither side converting their scores. Both sides can take a huge amount of encouragement from their respective performances into the remaining league fixture.
The 18's will be working hard all week in preperation for next weeks home fixture against Kilkenny.
Team:1) Sam Hare, 2) Dave Warren, 3) Ray Dufficy, 4) Brian Kenny (capt), 5) Alan O'Reilly, 6) Sean O'Mara, 7) Chris Leavy, 8) Ben Harrison, 9) Colin Smyth, 10) Leo Quinn, 11) Mark Gleeson, 12) Eamon Daly, 13) Darren Finnigan, 14) John Taylor, 15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Padraig Beatty
17) Tony Bracken Kennedy
18) Gary Nolan
19) Flan Brennan
20) Rob Tiernan Naas U16s 13 - Banhall U16s 10
Saturday the 18th of November 2006 (Under 16's)
By Sean Molloy The final minute of this terrific battle brought Barnhall another bitterly disappointing defeat in the Leinster Premier League South.
Barnhall came into this game looking for a powerful start from the first whistle and the coaches were very happy when their young team provided exactly that. A good positional kick from out-half Flynn, deep into the the Naas 22, gave Barnhall the attacking position every one dreams of in the first minutes of a game. The Naas line-out was spoiled, limiting them to gain only a few metres and Barnhall with a precious line out. Peter Hall jumping at 4, took clean ball and with a move straight from the training ground, put it down to Benn Moore, coming around on the peel. Moore let quick ball to the backs who put the ball wide at speed with good handling from O'Sullivan & Taylor at centre, leading to a succession of fast rucks which brought Gearóid Conway crashing over for a 3 rd minute try. The wide angled conversion was missed and the score was 5-0.
What happened next woke the Barnhall boys up to the realities of rugby in this intensely fought competition. Having kept possession from the restart, Naas moved the ball wide. A missed tackle on the Naas out-half let him through to create the overlap; good hands put the Naas no 13 into a 2 on 1 situation which was not wasted. 7 minutes gone and the score 5-5.
Barnhall were vexed and it showed from the restart. Excellent work in the forwards gave Barnhall continued possession and again Flynn put the Bulls deep into the Naas 22 for a line out. Another spoiled Naas throw and Barnhall line-out just 15m out. A clean catch from Hall, ball off the top and a perfect pass from Feeney, let the backs loose. Flynn moved the ball wide to O'Sullivan, who with the sweetest dummy pass created a hole for himself to go through and score just left of the uprights. A missed conversion left the score at 10-5 with just 10 minutes played.
The remainder of the half was just as intense with both sides defending as hard as the other attacked.
The second half saw Naas with the wind to their backs and a fire in their belly. The young bulls had never had to defend so much and the relentless Naas pressure led to their very hard running no:13 getting his second try. Naas missed the conversion and the score 10-10 on 40 minutes. Barnhall full back O'Reilly was replaced following a few hard knocks and the re-shuffled back line struggled to find the attacking form of the first half. The remainder of the match was pretty much spent with Barnhall defending in their own half, which they did with gusto. Credit should be given to winger Eddie Delahunt who put in countless try saving tackles.
Disaster struck for the Blues when with just two minutes remaining, Naas were awarded a penalty 35m out in front of the posts. With the fortune of a strong wind to his back the Naas kicker got them the winning 3 points.
Barnhall Team: O'Reilly C, El-Damasi, Taylor , O'Sullivan, Delahunt; Flynn, Feeney; Egan, O'Melia, Hall, Murray, Glynn, Finnegan, Conway, Moore.
Subs; Hynes, Kernan, O'Reilly G.
Barnhall 24 Edenderry 10
Sunday 14th November (Under 14's)
Ref MR T. Andrucetti (l.b.r.f.u.)
After a late withdrawal by Bective , Edenderry were able to travel to BARNHALL to fulfil an u 14s friendly fixture. Edenderry are near the top of the midlands league at the moment and proved that point by putting Barnhall under pressure for the opening few minutes, however Barnhall soon got into their stride with some great incisive runs by centre Craig Phillips. One of these runs provided the first try by Darragh Mc Gee who used his exceptional speed to outpace his opposite number. Edenderry came back and the play was very competitive with forward exchanges quite tough. Edenderry's talented number 8 was making inroads into the Barnhall defence until Thomas McGurk playing at open side and Fergal Conway (blindside) flanker ear-marked him and tackled him every time he broke from the scrum. Barnhalls scrum was very solid with a relatively new front row of Carl O'Connor Craig Mulalley Ghaya Obitko giving as good as they got.
In the line outs Barnhall were with out their usual hooker David Mongey (injured) and Craig Mulalley fulfilled the role admirably, however Edenderry were quick to breakthrough each time. This is an area where Barnhall will have to tighten up on. On Edenderry's own lineouts they were using their strength to throw to number one all the time but Barnhall cottoned on to this and put their big jumper Thomas McGurk at number one to neutralise him.
Barnhall's second try came from Lee Kearns who made his usual aggressive run from the 22 bursting through the opposition's missed tackles to touch down under the posts. Thomas McGurk converted.
Edenderry came back with a try before halftime to set up for an interesting second half.
From the restart Barnhall re-established their dominance and a great run by winger Carl George was halted just short of the Edenderry line however Thomas McGurk was in quick support and picked up the loose ball to go over for a try. Barnhall were now in top gear and after out half Sean Guiney got the backline moving quickly and some great handling by the Barnhall backs Darragh Mc Gee ran in for his second try .
With five minutes go Edenderry were handed a soft consolation try when Barnhall conceded a penalty on their own 22, Barnhall obligingly handed the ball to Edenderry who took a quick tip and run while Barnhall were still retreating but the match was beyond doubt at that stage
Full Back Eric Roberts
Wing Darragh Mc Gee (2T)
Centre Craig Trippy Phillips
Centre Lee Kearns (IT)
Wing Carl George
Out Half Sean Guiney
Scrum Half Neal Harrison
Tight head Carl O'Connor
Hooker Craig Mulalley
Loose Head Ghaya Obitko
Second Row David Morris-Smyth
Flanker Thomas Mc Gurk (IT 2CON)
No 8 Michael Wade
Flanker Fergal Conway
Subs From :
Eoin Hayes for Carl George
Peter Flynn fro Eric Roberts
Paul Devlin for Neal Harrison
Ryan Grace for Craig Phillips
Ryan Farrell for Lee Kearns
Denis Stewart for Darragh McGee
North Kildare 21 Barnhall 36
Saturday the 11th of November 2006 Under 18's
The Barnhall 18's continued their good vein of form by recording a convincing win against a very strong Carlow side 14 points to 8. This was a cracker of a game with a lot of the players knowing each other quite well and wanting to get the upper hand over their opposition. It was a very physical encounter with Barnhall coming out on top thanks to an all round performance. The pack were in great form and dominated set piece and loose play while the backs played an expansive game with lots of attacking flair. The scorers on the day were Leo quinn with 2 drop goals, Darren Finnigan with a try and Darragh O'Neil with a penalty goal.
Barnhall are now the only un-defeated side in the Sothern area premier division of the Leinster league. The next fixture is against Naas next Saturday 18th Nov, at Naas, KO @10:30am.
Team for Carlow game:
1) Sam Hare
2) Dave Warren
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Chris Leavy
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Eanna O'muire
12) Darren Finnigan
13) Eamon Daly
14) John Taylor
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Barcken-Kennedy
17) Mark Gleeson
18) Flan Brennan
19) Rob Tiernan
20) Gary Nolan
21) Aubrey Walsh
22) Rob Murphy
North Kildare 21 Barnhall 36
Under 18's Saturday 4th November 2006
Rob Harrison Reports
The result was a resounding 36-21 away victory against North Kildare in the Leinster league, with North Kildare scoring 3 late tries in the last 10 mins. That result leaves Barnhall U18's unbeaten so far in the league campaign.
1) Sam Hare
2) Dave Warren
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Alan O'Reilly
5) Brian Kenny (capt)
6) Sean O'Mara
7) Chris Leavy
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Rob Murphy
12) Eamon Daly
13) Darren Finnegan
14) John Taylor
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Gary Nolan
18) Aubrey Walsh
19) Flan Brennan
20) Eanna O'Muire
21) Rob Tiernan
Naas 13 - Barnhall 22
Under 14's Sunday 5/11/06
By
Kieran McGee
Barnhall's under 14's got their Metro League campaign off to a great start with a fine away win and bonus point against the highly rated Naas team. Tries from Thomas McGurk & Lee Kearns in the first half and Michael Wade & Fergal Conway in the second together with a conversion from McGurk saw the Barnhall team safely home in this tight game.
Under 18's
The under 18's recieved a "walk over" this week end in the Leinster League as New Ross failed to field a team. The game was called off early Saturday morning so the Barnhall lads went ahead with a short notice training session to work out the frustration of not playing. The next Leinster league game is scheduled for Nov 4th against North Kildare.
Under 14's
Match versus Nass Postponed due to flu and injuries
Barnhall 3 Portlaoise 0
Rob Harrison Reports
14th Oct 2006
We started our Leinster League campaign last Saturday the 14th against Portlaoise winning with a score line of 3 - 0 . The match was a "right arm wrestle" from the start with the only score coming from full back Darragh O'neill in the first half with a penalty score.
The team was as shown below and all subs were used.
1) Aubrey Walsh
2) Dave Warren
3) Ray Dufficy
4) Brian Kenny (Capt)
5) Al O'reilly
6) Sam Hare
7) Sean O'Mara
8) Ben Harrison
9) Colin Smyth
10) Leo Quinn
11) Mark Gleeson
12) Chris Leavy
13) Darren Finnegan
14) John Taylor
15) Darragh O'Neill
16) Tony Bracken Kennedy
17) Eanna O'Muire
18) Rob Tiernan
19) Flan Brennan
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