Brave Birr battle to the end to record brilliant Leinster Cup win over Greystones

Birr 22
Greystones 19

BIRR U-13s advanced to the next round of the Leinster U-13 Cup with a three point win over Greystones after a brilliant team performance on Sunday.
Trailing by twelve points to five at half-time, Birr scored three second-half tries and only conceded one to win a hugely entertaining game and advance to the next round of the Leinster Cup.
On a cool morning in Birr in ideal conditions for rugby, a physically strong Greystones side started stronger and opened the scoring with a converted try.
Birr shook that off and settled into the game and their defensive work improved as the half went on. They also started to make an impact in attack with some strong carries from the forwards and good, flowing moves in the backs.
Their efforts were rewarded when Cian O'Donnell crossed for a try midway through the half to leave just two between the sides.
Two evenly matched sides continued to battle each other up and down the field with some great defensive work from both teams.
Before half-time, Greystones took advantage of an errant kick from Birr to score their second try of the half to take a 12-5 lead to the break.
Despite being behind, Birr were well in the game and they came out even stronger after the restart.
They got on terms with a try under the posts from Shane Cummins that Noah Moran converted and at this stage they were on top in the game.
A powerful run from centre Sam Cleare got Birr to within touching distance of the Greystones line and after some powerful phases of play, Cian O'Donnell crossed the line to put Birr 17-12 ahead.
Birr continued to push forward and after more strong attacking play from the forwards and the backs, they set up another opportunity close to the Greystones line with Dylan King seizing the opportunity to score Birr's fourth try in the right corner.
There was still time left and Greystones mounted a number of attacks but each time the entire Birr team stood up and were counted in a brilliant defensive effort.
With just minutes to go, Greystones managed to break the Birr line and scored a try under the posts that was converted to leave just three points between the sides to set up a grandstand finish.
Greystones threw everthing at Birr in the the frantic final minutes but to a man, Birr were up to the challenge and there were some great steals to turn over possession.
In the final attack, Greystones kicked through hoping to get behind the Birr defence but full-back Noah Moran was in position to get the ball and he kicked to touch to end a fabulous game with Birr winning 22-19.
It was the ultimate team effort from Birr with strong carries, strong tackles and a determination to win that ultimately saw them over the line.
Down to a match day squad of 19 due to injuries and absences, every player who crossed the line played a pivotal part in a memorable cup win.
BIRR: Tadhg Dooley, Matthew Carey, Oisin O'Meara; Dylan King, Conall O'Crowley; Sean Boland, Keelan Barnes, Cian O'Donnell; Jack Gleeson, Shane Cummins; Cian Molloy, Gearoid Molloy, Sam Cleare, Harry Watkins, Noah Moran (c). Subs: Oisin Duggan, Charlie Carthy, Killian O'Hare, Ben Lawlor. Squad: Joey Canham, Ryan Molloy, Darragh Dooley, Sam Power, Ethan Mulholland, Craig Landy, Cillian Clery.