Crescent maintain league challenge

AS his team took the field for this AIL division two clash last Saturday, Old Crescent coach John Broderick was an anxious man. He had lost four of his side through injury that morning and worse was to come with key back-row Mark Ryan injuring his shoulder in the warm-up. Then Pat Humphreys was helped off with a head injury after just 30 seconds and number eight Juan Pablo Ruiz played no further part in proceedings due to a knee injury with just 18 minutes gone.

‘Humma’ returned to give a trademark gritsy performance and Crescent showed admirable courage, digging deep to chalk up 24 unanswered second half points after trailing 6-0 at the break.

This latest victory keeps Crescent’s hopes of a place in the new-look eight team division one B next season alive. With three games remaining, they now raise their expectations to three consecutive five point victories. When they got the ball wide last Saturday, they looked dangerous and two of their three tries highlighted the scoring power that they have behind the scrum.

“I don’t regret not getting the bonus point,” Crescent coach John Broderick told us after the game. “Thomond made sure that we did not get sufficient clean ball to open up the play very often and the score does not reflect how tough this victory was for us.” Not for the first time Crescent looked to their front-row to carry the fight to the opposition. PJ McLoughlin continues to belie his years

and the amount of work that he put in at the coalface of this physical encounter was immense. The experience of Humphreys and Eugene McGovern was also important, making tackles that prevented certain Thomond tries and inspiring those behind them.

With a strong wind behind them, Thomond too a while to settle. Two breaks by Brian O’Shea gave Crescent good territory but when the out-half got his first attempt at the posts, he sent his kick wide of the posts after the home camp failed to a kicking tee on the field. Simon Malone replaced JPLuiz and went on to play an outstanding game in the back-row �“ a role more familiar to his brother Peter. On 25 minutes Thomond went into the lead. Brian Buckley made two important lineout takes to set up scrums inside the home 22. The penalty was awarded and Declan Cusack landed the kick. Cusack failed with his next penalty attempt but increased the Thomond lead to 6-0 a minute before the break when he bashed a long range penalty between the posts.

Brian O’Shea got an early chance to reduce the deficit just after the break but sent his penalty kick from30 metres out, right and wide. Crescent began to sense that they could win this game and after they nicked a Thomond lineout and forced a penalty, O’Shea made it 3-6 from a comfortable distance.

Within four minutes it was 10-6 to the home side. Broderick switched the ball inside to Billy Leahy, Aaron O’Carroll cut in from the right wing at a great angle and cleverly found Brian O’Shea on the blind side for a brilliant try. O’Shea added the extra points.

Thomond tried to work the ball upfield through the pack but progress was slow and cumbersome. Crescent were always dangerous on the break and they increased their lead to 17-6 on 58 minutes when Ray Moloney got on the end of another piece of running rugby to go over. O’Shea again added the extras. A converted try would have put Thomond into the bonus point zone but Crescent withstood a period of fierce forward pressure five metres from their line.

Once they lifted that siege, the home side finished in style. Eamonn Broderick, who stood out throughout, made a magnificent break that saw the ball go through three pairs of hands before the big centre capped a good Crescent performance with their third try. Mark Woods popped over the easy conversion.

Old Crescent: R Moloney; A O’Carroll, E Broderick, B Leahy, D Grace (E Dalton 74); B O’Shea (M Woods 65), A Purcell; PJ McLoughlin (T Bowles 68), P Humphreys (S Malone t 3), J Cullinane 74), E McGovern; P Breen, C McNamara; L Viapula, J O’Neill, JP Ruiz (S Malone 18).

Thomond: M O’Halloran (K O’Mahoney 77); B Grant (N Sheehan 63), H O’Neill, W Kelly, D O’Neill; D Cusack, A Hartery; T Clifford (G O’Donoghue 76), A O’Donnell, E Fraher (J Higgins 77); D O’Connell (J

Ryan 63), C Liston; B Buckley, S Bourke, J Sheehan.

Referee, Trevor Collins, MAR.

Scorers, Old Crescent, Brian O’Shea try, two conversions, one penalty; tries Ray Moloney, Eamonn Broderick; conversion Mark Woods.

Thomond, two conversions Declan Cusack.