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Mallow RFC Weather Youghal Storm to Claim Bonus Point Victory

Mallow RFC Weather Youghal Storm to Claim Bonus Point Victory

Michael Sweeney10 Dec 2018 - 15:16
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1st XV Match Report vs Youghal RFC

Mallow left the wind swept south-east coast last weekend with a well deserved away win against Youghal as they continue on the winning trail. The home side however made it very difficult for Mallow as they fought tooth and nail for every inch during this encounter. With Mallow playing at full strength, it was the last years Division 1 outfit who got off the mark first. Their opening try came from a blocked box kick which was compounded by numerous unforced errors from the visitors. Mallow refused to panic however, and they got on the scoresheet themselves within minutes. Mallow kicked the corners well and Timmy Fitzgerald's line-out throwing was imperious all day as the visitor's began to dictate proceedings. On numerous occasions, the Mallow pack produced cohesive and controlled mauls to send Youghal marching backwards. Ronan McCarthy benefited from a collapsed line-out maul to bury over the whitewash from 1 metre out. Mallow piled the pressure on their opponents and again came up trumps with their second score of the game. Thanks to a dominant scrum, Mallow shoved the Youghal pack backwards to within inches of their own line. When the ball went wide, Dave Breen didn't need the overlap outside him, leaping over his opposite number and escaping the attempted tackles to score Mallow's second 5-pointer, adding the conversion afterwards. The visitors went into half-time with little or no cushion, and it all still to do in the second half.

The second forty began well for Mallow as they got up and running relatively quickly, building pressure on the home side. An early try put some daylight between the two sides. With the platform delivered by the ever effective front five, Mike Sweeney combined beautifully with Dave Breen on a switch play and his offload out of the tackle gave Mike O' Flynn an unopposed run in under the posts for his 5th try of the campaign. With Youghal finding their discipline difficult to maintain, Mallow began to reap the benefits. The home side again went down to 14 men in the second half as a result of retaliation and Mallow made them pay dearly. Rory Murphy and Dan McCarthy made their presence felt from the bench and the ever present Chris O' Regan and Brian Henry carried with aplomb, getting Mallow on the front foot. The bonus point was eventually secured at the end of the third quarter. Patient build up play drew in the Youghal defence to give Mallow a numerical advantage out wide. The ball went swiftly through several pairs of hands before finding Jimmy Glynn. He threw a dummy and dived over from close range to make the scoreline 24-7. Youghal were not finished there however and demonstrated their worth throughout the closing stages of this contest. They pushed Mallow to the pin of their collar adding two tries of their own before the final whistle closed out proceedings under the lights.

Mallow were relieved to get the win as this game was the 6th weekend in a row for the North Cork side. It gives them a healthy cushion going into the Christmas break. With the first half of the season behind them, Mallow now have 39 points from a possible 40, with 8 games played. Kinsale and Clonakilty lie in 2nd and 3rd place on 26 and 23 points respectively, but with games in hand. Mallow RFC would like to extend a huge thank you to all the support over the past 3 months and look forward to continued support through 2019, particularly VASS Motors whose continued support is greatly appreciated. Happy Christmas to all from Mallow RFC.

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