The 1st XV recorded a morale boosting victory yesterday (Sun 9th Nov) at the Grove Grounds, when they defeated local rivals Castleisland by 16 points to 13. Here is the match report as follows: Sunday 9th November 2014 Abbeyfeale 16 Castleisland 13 The once revered American football coach, Vince Lombardi, once said that “Winning isn’t everything. It’s the only thing, a statement that was sure to circle the minds of all players involved on Sunday last at the Grove Grounds. Castleisland were entering the fray on the back of four consecutive wins in their league campaign and after having beaten Thurles the previous weekend, they were coming into this game with high expectations as well being tagged as favourites. However, with local derbys, you never know whos going to win, but one thing you do know for sure though, is that itll be one hell of a battle. Abbey played up in the first half and with a strong breeze behind them they were looking to take advantage of it in order to get points on the board. But as has been the case in so many matches this year, Abbey started off poorly when they knocked on directly from the kick off. With Island possessing a big pack, Abbey knew they needed to show some dominance from the beginning. From the scrum Island No. 8 picked from the base and worked his way down the blindside. With pressure mounting up, Abbey were forced to concede a penalty just shy of their own ten metre line. In what was a kickable position, Island opted for the corner instead and ended up on Abbeys five metre line. Stern defence from the home side kept Island at bay, but after a number of pick and drives, Abbey again were penalised for not releasing. Again, Island eschewed the opportunity for three points and instead sought touch. But their decision was to pay dividends when from a well worked line-out, the ball was popped down from the jumper to his wing forward looping around, who in turn offloaded to his hooker who broke through the tackle of Kieran McCarthy to dive over for the games first score. It was a dubious decision to say the least as the Island hooker was adjudged to have his foot in touch. However, the referee disagreed, much to the dismay of the home sides support. Abbey were somewhat rattled from this early pressure from Castleisland, but they slowly began to gain parity in the game. After a solid take from a high ball, Abbey full back, Philip Collins took it into contact, but with Castleisland rushing up they were penalised for being offside. With points on offer and the wind with them, Tom Hassett opted for the posts but the attempt went begging. Abbey were still in Islands half and from the 22 metre drop out, they attacked again. They worked their way out wide and were making steady ground until a knock on stopped their progress. Abbeys scrum was proving to be an asset, operating more efficiently than the performance suggested against Thurles earlier in the campaign. With Islands scrum being put under pressure, their No. 8 picked from the base, however, a superb tackle from John Browne resulted in Abbey being awarded a penalty just inside the away sides 22. Having missed one just moments earlier, Abbey opted for the corner this time and were looking to showcase their maul. A crooked throw in spurned any opportunity for the Fealesiders, but they were to be given a lifeline when from the resulting scrum, the away side conceded a penalty for hands in the ruck. After having enjoyed much of the territory in the opening minutes of the game, they needed to convert this into points. Abbeys goal kicker, Tom Hassett duly obliged and got Abbeys first points of the game. Castleisland pressed ahead from the restart, attacking Abbeys half at will with a number of drives, but a loose ball which was hacked on by Michael Roche had the Island defence scampering back. However, Island were to concede a penalty, when after a great tackle from Abbey centre John Murphy, the away side were penalised for holding onto the ball. With Abbey opting for the line-out, they mauled their way closer to the visitors line but Islands defence remained stern. A penalty soon followed for the home side and sensing that Islands line could be breached, they again opted for the corner. However, Island were unnerved by this and when the home side lost the resulting throw in, the away side cleared their lines. Abbey still remained in the oppositions half but when the ball was spread wide, they tried to force the play too much resulting in a knock on. With the referee playing advantage Island regathered the loose ball and made their way to the half way line before conceding a needless penalty. When the resulting kick for the corner went out on the full, the home side were to be dealt with a further blow with the withdrawal of the stoic Liam McEnery. Castleislands indiscipline was proving costly in terms of territory, with Abbey capitalising to get themselves inside the visitors half. A great take from Philip Daly at the line-out and a resulting maul, pushed Abbey closer. With out half Michael Roche looking for quick ball, he sensed that something was on. Having broke through the first tackle, he offloaded to Michael Enright who just couldnt release the ball on time, before being tackled. With Abbey having numbers out wide, it was an opportunity lost in an otherwise close knit game. Island were looking to get back into Abbeys half, having been camped inside their own half for much of the first period. A penalty saw them get over half way and from a well worked line-out, they got over the gain-line with ease. With Abbeys backline being stretched, they spread the ball wide where they had numbers. Abbeys defence desperately tracked across but a high tackle from John Browne resulted in Castleisland being awarded a penalty. With Island now on the ascendancy, they opted for the line-out option just on Abbeys five metre line. A further penalty followed and from the resulting line-out, Island mauled their way over for their second try of the day. From the restart, a thunderous hit from Kieran McCarthy had Island peddling back. The away side desperately cleared, but a fantastic counter attack from the impressive Philip Collins, got Abbey on the front foot. However, the final pass let him down. Island were trying any means possible of breaching Abbeys half and were testing the home sides back three with high kicks. This option was proving to be futile though with Abbey full back Philip Collins coming to the forefront with a number of takes. With Collins spotting a gap in behind the visitors defence, he put through a majestic kick to peg Island back into their 22. A poor clearance followed after some pressure from Abbey winger Robert Browne. Abbeys maul was impressing and having gained a number of metres, Castleisland were penalised for coming in from the side. With a seven point gap between the two sides, Abbey opted for the points to try and claw their way back. However, Hassetts attempt just shaded right and wide. But he was to make amends just moments later, when from the restart, a wicked bounce from a Robert Browne kick through caused all sorts of problems for the Island full back. With Abbey piling on numbers at the ruck, Island conceded a penalty directly in front of their posts. Hassett atoned for his earlier miss to claw Abbey back to within four points. With half time fast approaching, Island made their way back down field again and were awarded a penalty after a scrum infringement. The away sides out half eschewed the opportunity to kick for goal in favour of setting up a line-out on the Abbey five-metre line. Having scored an impressive try at the beginning of the game through a well worked line-out, Island almost replicated that score only for their effort to be thwarted by an Abbey knock on. With Castleisland holding a slender four point lead heading into half time, Abbey knew that the next score could prove vital. With their scrum proving to be solid, it was giving the lads a platform to attack the away sides defence. However, indiscipline and poor execution at the line-out were having a detrimental effect on Abbeys game plan. Stern words at half time were needed for Abbeyfeale and it looked like it ignited them when they began impressively at the beginning of the second half. With Island being penalised for coming in from the side, Abbey sought touch just over the half way line. A loose ball from the resulting line-out was gathered by Tom Hassett who looked to spread the ball, where he found Michael Roche. Roche, spotting a gap, jinked his way through and with Abbey now on the ascendancy, they worked their way through a number of phases. From the base of a ruck, Abbey scrum half, Tom Hassett spotted a slight gap and picked to make a clear break through. Hassett did superbly to fend off one tackle and with players in support, he was able to set up a ruck again. With Abbey piling on numbers and with Island desperately trying to force a turnover, the referee awarded a penalty to the home side when an Island player was adjudged to have not released the player. Hassett went for the kick at goal, but with his effort ricocheting off the upright, John Murphy chased and regathered the rebound. A number of pick and drives ensued from the home side but their efforts were frustrated with a knock on just metres from the opposition try-line. With Island clearing their lines, Abbey still found themselves camped inside the oppositions half. They again looked to attack, but with the home sides line-out not functioning well at times throughout the game, it was proving to be a bit problematic. A crooked throw in gave the away side a scrum, but having failed to find touch, Abbey winger David Ward counter attacked, slipping through three tackles before offloading to Michael Enright, who crashed up the middle to within metres of the line. Quick ball was needed but Island were slowing it down, allowing their defence to make it back into position. Abbey eventually spread the ball wide and almost made the breakthrough, but with the Island defence holding firm, the home side was finding it difficult to find a way through. Michael Roche changed the direction of play and when the ball was spread from left to right, Abbey seemed to have numbers. However, a poor floating pass from Roche allowed the Castleisland defender to rush up, and when John Browne gathered the loose pass, he was instantly tackled. Abbey were awarded a scrum when the referee adjudged the Island defender to have knocked on the ball, much to the anger of their bench. With Abbey just metres away from the oppositions try-line and with their scrum functioning well, it gave the home side an ideal platform with which to attack. John Browne picked from the base and worked his way down the blindside before offloading to Tom Hassett, who drew in one defender before he too offloaded to Robert Browne. Browne managed to gain yards despite having little or no room to maneuverer. Abbey kept it tight with Kieran McCarthy leading by example, driving at the heart of the oppositions defence. With the ball being recycled, quick ball from Hassett found Michael Roche outside ,who sidestepped magnificently to dart over for Abbeys first try of the game. With Hassett adding on the extras, Abbey now held a three point lead with a 13-10 score line. There was little time to catch breath with an immediate Island riposte; having worked their way up field, Island found themselves within five metres of Abbeys line. From a line-out the away side set up a maul but with Abbeys defence being stubborn, Island were forced to spread the ball wide. Abbey were penalised just under their posts for not rolling away and with John Murphy being sin binned for the offence, Abbey were now down to fourteen players. The visitors slotted over the kick to draw the sides level after twenty minutes of the second half. But tensions soon boiled over when a scuffle erupted between both sets of players and when it came to an end, the referee sin binned Abbeys Gerard Walsh while brandishing a red card for the Castleisland hooker. Abbey made their way inside Islands half, with Michael Enright powering his way through to set up a ruck inside Islands five metre line. A penalty soon followed for the home side and with three points on offer, Tom Hassett duly obliged to put Abbey back in the lead. But Abbeys good work almost came undone, when direct from the restart, they conceded a penalty for holding on. Castleisland, having passed up on numerous kicking chances throughout the game, opted for the posts this time, but with pressure building, the kick just went left and wide. Abbeys indiscipline was proving costly in terms of territory, with their penalty count mounting. With this in mind, Island made their way inside the home sides half, when their winger broke through the middle to come within metres of the home sides line. A superb tackle from John Murphy prevented a possible score and with the referee penalising Island for punching, and subsequently sin binning a player, Abbey survived the onslaught. Abbeys defence was defiant in its resistance and with the clock ticking away, they needed to maintain this facet of their play. Island never gave up though and attacked with every opportunity. However, Abbeys doggedness in defence repelled their advances and when Abbey forced Island into an error, it was left for Tom Hassett to kick the ball out to record a moral boosting victory. Despite securing a fantastic scalp over one of the top teams, the lads will know that there are certain areas to work on. The scrum functioned well along with their defence but a main area of concern would have been the line-out and the coaches would not have been happy with the home sides penalty count which pushed into double figures. Nevertheless though, this is a morale boosting victory and the lads effort must be commended. Castleisland however, will rue some big calls in the aftermath of this match, having passed up on a number of kickable penalties throughout the game. Abbey will now look to get a winning run under their belt when they face Clanwilliam next in quarter final of the Challenge Shield. But, in the words of Lombardi, “Winning is not a sometime thing…it’s an all the time thing. You don’t win once in a while…you don’t do the right thing once in a while…you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit.” Lets just hope this habit cant be kicked for a while. Team: 1) A. Roche, 2) K. McCarthy, 3) M. Morrissey, 4) G. Walsh, 5) B. Collins, 6) L. McEnery, 7) Philip Daly, 8) J. Browne, 9) T. Hassett, 10) M. Roche, 11) R. Browne, 12) M. Enright, 13) J. Murphy, 14) D. Collins, 15) Philip Collins Subs: 16) L. OConnor, 17) T. McCarthy,18) D. Murphy, 19) S. Daly, 20) David Ward
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 21:24:13 +0000