Three tries within the space of 10 minutes during a torrid second half decided this Leinster Schools Senior Cup (Section A) semi-final in favour of Marian College at Lakelands Park yesterday.

Marian had shown no signs of unlocking a sound St Mel's defensive unit until the 43rd minute of the game. Indeed, St Mel's had forged a 10-3 half-time lead.

Centre David Quinn was at the bottom of a maul that rumbled up over the Marian line in the 31st minute and out-half Colm Glynn converted. This put St Mel's back in front after Glynn's early penalty had been cancelled out by a similar effort from Marian out-half Albert Allen.

However, once Marian breached their opponents' defence, it suddenly looked like they could score at will. Allen put left-wing Nicholas O'Donovan over in the left corner for number eight Glen Trehy to land an admirable conversion from the touch-line.

The powerful Trehy twisted his way to the line three minutes later from the base of a five-metre scrum for an unconverted try. Then scrum-half Mark Egan whipped around the side of a maul on halfway, kicked ahead perfectly and won the 40 metre race to ground the ball as it crossed the line in the 53rd minute.

St Mel's were in dire straits at this point. Many other sides would have accepted the probable. Not them. All of a sudden, passes went to hand and their backs began to stride forward purposefully. One got the distinct impression Marian were more content when the ball was being wrestled for in the relative safety zone among the forwards. St Mel's had the better ability behind the scrum and Enda Brady got in for their second try in the 63rd minute but it came at too late a stage.

Marian College: D Walsh; D Prior, M N Miralles, B Egan, N O'Donovan; A Allen, M Egan; T Keating, A Whelan, S Healy; R Russell, G Dolan; D O'Reilly, M Reid, G Trehy.

St Mel's: K Masterson; F Lennon, D Quinn, D Farrell, S Silke; C Glynn, S Donohar; B Diffley, D McMahon, K McDonald, M Gilchriest, E Keenan, E Brady, T Nolan, M Lindsay.

Referee: M Gillick (ARLB).