The old sporting adage - a good big one will always beat a good little one - was certainly in evidence in this Leinster Schools' Section A Junior Cup quarter-final at Bird Avenue yesterday. A well-drilled but small St Columba's pack, that produced some innovative lineout work, was just not able to deal with the bigger Marian College forwards.
It was no coincidence number eight Vincent Byrne claimed the only two tries of the game for the winners. The first came after three minutes when he brushed aside four tackles to cross the line. St Columba's responded with a Chris Cahill penalty.
Just before the interval, Marian worked a clever move from a five-metre tap penalty for Byrne to burst over under the posts. Hooker Stephen Mooney converted for a 12-3 half-time lead. Cahill shot a 58th-minute penalty to leave St Columba's within a converted try of glory.
MARIAN COLLEGE: S Ludden; H Eager, C Browne, R O'Neill, J McCabe; B McDonald, G McDonald; S Reilly, S Mooney, J Kavanagh, B Hogan, G Skelly, G O'Neill, E Fogarty, V Byrne.
ST COLUMBA'S COLLEGE: J Cafolla; B Bourke, A Mitchell, R Cork, B Cork; A Philpot (E Guilfoyle, 46 mins), C Cahill; W Evans, T Fadipe, N Grumbley, A Rauscher, O Harrison, M Davies, J Moore (O Rowland, half-time), H Davis-Goff.
Referee: G Feerick (ARLB).
