Clontarf can take control

Clontarf v Buccaneers Being at home, whereas their debut in last season's semi-finals was away to eventual winners Shannon, today's televised semi-final (Network 2, 2.30) can rightly be considered the biggest game in Clontarf's history.

Clontarf have won five of the previous six meetings, including all four at Castle Avenue, whereas Buccaneers have won only twice on their last 15 league visits to Leinster. Clontarf also finished 11 points above Buccaneers, whom they beat in March by 32-17, and at full strength they're entitled to start warm favourites.

Buccaneers travelled in high optimism that day but couldn't live with Clontarf's cohesive, recycling game and array of target runners up front - Bernard Jackman, Ben Gissing, Dave Moore and co.

But John McKee's side were ill-disciplined that day, incurring a couple of costly yellow cards during which most of the damage was done. They've been buoyed by the return of four of their representative players - the prolific Wayne Munn, Ted Robinson, Rowen Froist and Colm Rigney - while the impressive Conor O'Loughlin is preferred at scrumhalf, with Chris Keane moving to centre and exam-tied Justin Meagher on the bench.

Semi-final strains will probably place a bigger premium on discipline. As was evidenced at Lansdowne Road last Sunday, favouritism can be a weighty tag, and in a curious sense most of the pressure is on Clontarf.

In the first four years of the play-offs, the first-placed team went on to win the title, but Cork Constitution failed to maintain the sequence in the last two seasons. Clontarf's record this season now counts for nothing.

Nevertheless, the 12-try 80-pointer against a hapless St Mary's last time out rather gave the lie to the notion that Clontarf can't play on the firmer grounds. Thus, while anticipating a much closer contest than the previous meeting this season, barring a case of stagefright Clontarf ought to have too much all-round try-scoring potential to slip up here.

CLONTARF: D O'Shea; N O'Brien, D Higgins, J Downey, O Winchester; D Hewitt, M Walls; W O'Kelly (capt), B Jackman, A Clarke, B Gissing, A Wood, D Quinn, D Moore, S O'Donnell.

Buccaneers: W Munn; T Robinson, C Keane, W Wallace, P O'Sullivan; L Turner, C O'Loughlin; R McCormack, J McVeigh, M Cahill, R Frost, N Smullen, G Shoeman, C Rigney, E Brennan (capt).

Previous meetings: Played 6, Clontarf 5 wins, 0 drawn, Buccaneers 1 win.

Leading try scorers: Clontarf - Bernard Jackman 12, Dave Moore 7, Dave Hewitt 6. Buccaneers - Justin Meagher 6, Conor O'Loughlin 5.

Leading points scorers: Clontarf - Darragh O'Shea 135, Conor Mahony 35. Buccaneers - Lee Turner 144.

Referee: Alan Lewis (IRFU).

Betting (Paddy Powers): Clontarf (-13) 10/11; Draw 16/1; Buccaneers (+13) 10/11.

Forecast: Clontarf to win.