Seven wins on the trot for clinical Tullamore

Tullamore showed their title credentials once more at the weekend with another solid win away to Bangor. The men from the north rested in 4th position before the tie, while Tullamore were in 2nd place.

All-Ireland Rugby League Division 2C

Tullamore 23

Bangor 15

The game started at a frantic pace, and Bangor brought aggression and tenacity at the breakdown and with their carries. They were rewarded in the 5th minute when Tullamore were adjudged to be holding on at the breakdown. The Bangor outhalf converted the 3 pointer from the 10 metre line to take an early lead.

Tullamore lassoed back into life with some excellent carries and wit. Conor Dunne spotted a weakness in the defensive line and weaved into space. He whipped the ball to Lance Batten who was caught just short of the line. Tullamore remained calm and eventually scrambled over with a smart pick and go from Chris Whittle. Tullamore started to use the boot as the weather began to take a turn for the worse.

Conor Dunne sent an expert box kick deep into the Bangor rear guard and won a 50/22 as a result. From the resulting line out, Barry Bracken, Gavin Kelly and Cathal Behan all made trudging carries to eak the side close to the line. Bangor were eventually penalised and Conor Dunne duly added 3 more points. Dunne was successful again soon after with another 3 points and the group had begun to show real conviction when they breached the 22 metre line.

From the next restart, Tullamore made an elementary error from an exit. Their chase line was penalised for being offside and Bangor had a chance to punish Tullamore late in the half. The Bangor line out was on point throughout the game, and the side bullied their way over to bring the deficit to 3 points at the break.

The weather continued to drop after half time, but Tullamore kept their cool and exited expertly through Karl Dunne and Craig Strong. Bangor tried their best to break the Tullamore line but Tullamore were too organised and dogged to leave a chink in their defensive chain. From a messy scrum on the half way line, Gavin Kelly scooped the ball up and made a massive break. He flung the ball to Craig Strong who popped the ball to Scott Milne. Scott showed great awareness and skill to evade two tackles and released Sean McCabe down the touch line. He was caught just short. The Tullamore pack rambled around the edges to try and worm their way in before Karl Dunne called for the ball. He sent a pass to Craig Strong who hit a lovely chip into the hands of Eoin Farrell. Farrell pounced and dotted the ball down over the whitewash for Tullamore's second try of the game.

The visitors scored soon after this again by building their way down the pitch by some indiscipline from Bangor. Tullamore had a scrum on the 22 metre line. The ball made its way to Eoin Farrell, who jinked his way around several tackles to get to the 5 metre line. Conor Dunne fixed the defence and popped the ball to Christopher Whittle, Whittle exploded into the gap and bundled his way over for his second of the day. Dunne converted to stretch the lead to 18 points.

Tullamore had 2 chances late on to get the coveted bonus point but unfortunately lost possession during line out time. Bangor hung in and were rewarded at the death with a try of their own. The final score was 23-15 in favour of Tullamore.

Steven Joyce gave a fine account of himself on the wing while Barry Bracken gave an excellent defensive display. Christopher Whittle and Conor Dunne were awarded men of the match for their brilliant individual performances. Special mention to Fionnan Redmond who made his debut at the weekend at 18 years of age, the future is definitely bright. 

TULLAMORE: 1. Matthew Murphy, 2. Mark Kennedy, 3. Cathal Behan, 4. Alan Douglas, 5. Gavin Kelly, 6. Scott Milne, 7. Chris Whittle, 8. Barry Bracken (C), 9. Conor Dunne, 10. Karl Dunne, 11. Sean McCabe, 12. Lance Batten, 13. Eoin Farrell, 14. Steven Joyce, 15. Craig Strong.