Clon Lose Their Way in the Dublin Mountains

De La Salle Palmerston 38
Clonakilty 14
The, by now almost traditional, slow start of Clonakilty in the All Ireland League shows no sign of abating. Never has a Clon team been so well-prepared and there were genuine hopes that they could upset the form book by winning away on the first day of the campaign. De La Salle Palmerston were not the most difficult of assignments that they will meet in the division and indeed they were poor in the first half but still managed to take the break 20 points to the good. It is a game that needs to be consigned to the mental waste-paper basket as it is highly unlikely that the squad can suffer such a collective loss of form again. It was a really bad day at the office as they crashed to a big defeat with very few players enhancing their reputations. The start was good with Clon dominating the opening and looking the better side. However once DLSP got into the Clon half and scored their first points it was all downhill to the break. Clon's scrum was in difficulty and must take responsibility for the first try. DLSP’s scrum half their best player, was well taken by Joe Crowley at the base of the scrum and dispossessed. The ball was there for the taking but nobody broke from the Clon scrum to take advantage and the opportunity was lost as instead DLSP capitalised to score and Clon were five down after five minutes. The second after 17 mins was also painful With Crowley receiving attention the side switched off and a quick throw into the lineout was handed to the DLSP hooker who barged over from two metres. The conversion was good and they led by 10 points after 18 minutes. The third try was equally facile and a penalty sent Clon into the break with a 20 point mountain facing them. DLSP’s fourth and bonus point winning try shortly after the break albeit from a forward pass did little to boost the confidence and with the referee also appearing to blow Clon off the park the game was gone and even the bonus point was untouchable. The early lethargy was inexplicable but it was not all bad. Clon did improve in the second half but the problem was that so did DLSP. The loss of Joe Knowles to the sin bin did not help the cause and from the resultant penalty the Dubliners scored their fifth try but he chances were still there. Some very good moves were encouraging with a disallowed try for a knock-on but Clon did go on to score two excellent tries. First Alfie Harte took a quick tap and good work and quick hands from Crowley Kurt Morath and Paul Dillon saw Darragh Lynch dive in at the corner. The difficult conversion was made to look easy by Morath and at least Clon were on the board at 30 – 7. A penalty to DLSP and another try added to the misery before Clon scored their second try. This was the result of a great break from Mike Keohane and Noel O’Sullivan was on hand to take the pass and he outpaced the defence to the line. Morath’s conversion gave some respectability to the score line. Clon’s player of the day was new signing Dean Landy who had a great outing. A win in the first game of the league is not “essential” or “crucial” words that one hears regularly in this context. It is of course highly desirable as it establishes momentum but it would be worse to have lost at home. With players having to play out of position and with a number still to come into the squad there will be improvement but can it happen in a week? Belfast Harlequins provide the opposition for the West Cork club in their first home game this Saturday in The Vale. The northerners won their first game in style beating Old Crescent 31 – 16 and will travel in confidence. The squad was: Noel O’Sullivan, Eric Murphy, Darragh Lynch, David Lombard, JD O’Mahony, Kurt Morath, Joe Crowley, Tom Ryan, Alfie Harte, Joe Knowles, Danny Whelton, Dean Landy, Ger McCarthy, Michael Peter O’Regan, Mike Keohane, Hugh O’Neill, Derry O’Neill, Jason Fleming, Paddy Ryan and Paul Dillon.

Midleton 7
Clonakilty 34
The Senior Seconds lifted the gloom somewhat with a highly impressive win in Midleton in the league. Many players held their hands up in this game and Clon coach Dave O’Mahony will be heartened by this display. A number of players were tested out of their normal positions and all came through with flying colours. Captained by the excellent John O’Regan they took this game from the start and never allowed Midleton get into it hard though they tried. John O’Donnell in his first game of the season celebrated his engagement to physio Maeve Quirke with a superb performance at full back. Eric Murphy at scrum half was also impressive and the industrious Paddy Ryan and abrasive Jason Fleming also caught the eye. Ciarán Calnan was in complete control at out half and Matt Kirby showed deft touches. Two tries from Matt Kirby, one each from Ciarán Murphy, Paul Dillon, John O’Donnell and a Drop Goal and three conversions from Ciarán Calnan gave Clon a well-deserved 34 – 7 win. The seven was debatable as Midleton drove Clon over the line Eric Murphy clearly touched down but the replacement referee awarded the try to Midleton. There was little dissent as indeed the East Cork side deserved more for their efforts than that score. The squad was John O’Donnell, Ryan O’Flynn, John O’Driscoll, Paul Dillon, Matt Kirby, Ciarán Calnan, Eric Murphy, Derry O’Neill, Hugh O’Neill, Eoin Murphy, Sam Dignan, Jason Fleming, Ciarán Murphy, Paddy Ryan, John O’Regan and Owen Jackson.

Kinsale 13
Clonakilty 10

The J2s were unfortunate not to record a win as they went down in Kinsale by one score 13 – 10. Short a number of experienced regulars they started this game in whirlwind fashion and created an excellent team try for Gareth Boohig. Thereafter the crafty Kinsale side were dominant and took the lead with a penalty, a try and conversion to lead by 10 points to 5 at half time. The Clon team worked worked hard in the second half and scored an excellent try by the ever industrious Alan Harte. Unfortunately a number of kicks at goal were missed during the game and close to the finish Kinsale kicked an excellent penalty from the touchline to win the game. The team had a mixture of experience, beginners and under 19 players in the side. New players to the team included Kieran O'Donovan, Shane O'Driscoll, Barry Houlihan and Brian Gallwey. All played well and will gain from the experience of this game. The under 19 contingent of Ethan Jennings, Gareth Boohig, Paraic O'Leary, Adam Henson and Owen Jackson are fine players in the making and all contributed well to the team. The front of Pa O'Sullivan, Declan McCarthy and Kieran Hurley are front rows with the potential to play the game at a higher level. The important experience in the side came from Tim O'Regan, Alan Harte, John Allman, John Dineen, Michael Murphy, Diarmuid O'Sullivan and Tim Walsh.Clonakilty 29 Skibbereen 5The Under 17s had a great victory over neighbours Skibbereen in near ideal conditions. Good training numbers were at the heart of a very rewarding Clon win. The foundation for the win was laid down by a hard working pack bringing training drills to the game plan. Both scrum and lineout were productive while still leaving room for improvement. Clon constantly crossed the gain line at close quarters using good driving and support play to test Skibb's defence. Prominent in these attacks were A Flynn, G O’Mahoney, D Hennessy, R O’Mahoney, J O’Donovan and J Wilcox. Half backs G Ryan & R Courtney controlled the game well, with centres S Sheehan and, R Nash controlling the defensive line against creative Skibb backs. Wings S Cronin and G Brennan were resolute in defence and full backs Z Albehdlie’s impressive counter attack running was a feature of the game. A late lapse in defensive concentration led to a last minute try when Clon failed to regroup in the last minute. Tries by Z Albehdlie, A Flynn, S O’Donovan and J O’Donovan and a penalty and three conversions from G Ryan was a good return for the efforts. Overall Clon were rewarded for the good work shown at training in the past three weeks and this squad has the potential to put in a good league campaign if the collective work ethic shown to date remains. U17 Training each Monday and Wednesday Night 6:30 Sharp. All Welcome The Squad was Ben Howarth, Andrew Flynn, Chris Hayes, Shane O’Donovan, Dean Hennessy, Donal Duignan, Jack O’Donovan, Ronan O’Mahoney, Greg O’Mahoney, Eoin Hartnett, Josh Wilcox, Billy O’Regan, Gerry Ryan, Ruairc Courtney, Scott Sheehan, Ruairi Hash, Sam Cronin, Zen Albehdlie, Gearoid Brennan, Eoin O’Neill, Andrew Flynn, Billy Verlinder, Connor O’Brien, Kevin Decays-Dune.

Congratulations from all at Clonakilty RFC to Maeve Quirke and John O’Donnell recently engaged

Fixtures:
Saturday 10th
Under 15s V Dunmanway, Dunmanway, 11.30
Under 17s V Bandon, League, Bandon 11.30
Under 19s V Dunmanway, Dunmanway 11.30
Seniors V Belfast Harlequins. All Ireland League, The Vale 2.30pm

Sunday 11th
J2s V Bandon, League 12 noon.