MUNSTER JUNIOR CUP FINAL PBC 20 St Munchin's College 3COMPETITION SPECIALISTS Presentation Brothers Cork, made a special bit of history when they won back the Avonmore Munster Schools Junior Cup yesterday.
They became the first school side to win a trophy at the new Thomond Park and they did so in some style.
Two superbly taken tries inside as many minutes in the first half created the platform for victory.
The game burst into life after 19 minutes. PBC managed to turn over possession and a superb one-handed right-hand pass by scrumhalf Philip O’Leary saw his outside partner Rory Scannell make a searing break to send centre Gavin O’Callaghan in under the posts. Steven Dinan converted.
Virtually straight from the kick-off PBC struck again. This time fullback Dinan made a scorching run past several opponents and then offloaded precisely at the right moment to his right wing Brian Crowley, who crossed for try number two.
St Munchin’s got on the scoreboard after 29 minutes when Tom O’Neill landed a penalty.
Two minutes into the second half the game ended as a contest when PBC had a third try. Again both halfbacks were involved, with Rory Scannell sending in Séamus Glynn.
Scannell rounded off a great performance with a sweetly-taken drop goal.
St Munchin’s squandered two great try scoring opportunities but the PBC backs were a constant threat, with Dinan, Glynn and Scannell outstanding. Up front, Matt Curtin, Hugh O’Halloran and John Fitzgerald were always in the thick of the action.
For St Munchin’s, outhalf Tom O’Neill and Cormac O’Donnell were the best of the backs and in the forwards, Mel Corbett, Matthew McSweeney and Eoghan Kelly worked tirelessly but it was a day in which PBC were too crafty as they won back the cup they last held two years ago.
PBC:S Dinan; B Crowley, S Glynn, G O'Callaghan, D O'Keeffe; R Scannell, P O'Leary; M Curtin, D Keohane, R Callanan; H O'Halloran, R McCarthy; I Silke, W Foley, J Fitzgerald. Replacements:R Fenton for Crowley (53 mins), D Evans for O'Leary (56 mins), J Griffin for O'Halloran (57 mins), M Abbott for Keohane, T Duggan for O'Keeffe (both 59 mins), A Cremin for O'Callaghan (62 mins).
ST MUNCHIN'S COLLEGE:D Morrissey; C Shanahan, A Hannigan, C O'Donnell, G Bateman; T O'Neill, B Nugent; E Kelly, G Sheehan, D Byrne; M McSweeney, B Kilkenny; G Powell, S Airey, M Corbett. Replacements:S Houlihan for Sheehan (33 mins), B Molloy for Kilkenny (48 mins), G Morgan for Byrne, M Clancy for McSweeney (both 58 mins), C Ryan for Shanahan (61 mins).
Referee:J Lacey (MAR).
