Stephens brace helps DLSP live to fight another season

A good hanging always carries a certain prurient appeal. Better still when the condemned (on this occasion atypically dressed in black) slips the noose and gallops out of town with the girl.

And so it went at Lansdowne Road as a confluence of results from Clifford Park where Belfast Harlequins perished and Thomond Park where Old Crescent's last gasp wasn't quite enough, went with DLSP and saved their bacon for another season.

DLSP needed this one more than Lansdowne, who were destined to finish in that fat forgettable middle belt of the division where nothing significant is gained or lost.

While it had come down to a frenzied end, which DLSP through their sustained if occasionally tatty performance, deserved to win, it had been their seasonal performance, or lack of it, that got them there in the first place.

"We were disappointed with the season," said player-coach Phil Werahiko. "We are not as big as other sides out there and were lucky with the weather in the last few weeks. We were able to expand our game a little with the drier track."

It has been a huge learning curve for DLSP, one that Carlow will soon experience with their first steps in division one next season. But so too will the Kilternan team need to recruit if they are to avoid shredding anymore nerve endings in 2002.

The final episode, which featured DLSP captain Brian Hogan playing his 100th consecutive match for the team, was a Herculean scrap and Lansdowne simply didn't have the stomach for it.

Shane Stephens in the centre was masterly and with two difficult DLSP tries made to look elegantly simple reaffirmed his position as one of the best players in the league.

Eddie Devitt and Stephens combined with some efficient kicking from Damian McCabe to give DLSP the whip hand for the first half.

Despite scrappy play and poor positional kicking from both sides, DLSP's higher match tempo had them pressing relentlessly. For most of the game it was they who controlled pitch position.

At 11-17 ahead at the break their all-hands-on-deck urgency had been a success and left them halfway to the win and bonus points.

Using most of the bench to ensure their game was played at nothing less than fever pitch, DLSP never fully shut out the home side nor did Lansdowne threaten to up end the visitors.

A penalty from replacement out half David Quigley, Stephens' second try and another from second row Ronan Frost, having been gifted by Stephens, in a seven minute spell broke the back of the contest. And with bonus points too the job was complete.

Although number eight Colin McEntee bounced through a tangle of players from 20 yards out in DLSP's only real demonstration of lack of commitment, the match was already decided and another crack at Division one next season had already been secured.

Scoring sequence: 5 mins: M Woods pen 3-0; 16 mins: E Devitt try, D McCabe con 3-7; 21 mins: McCabe pen 3-10; 31 mins: S Stephens try, McCabe con 3-17; 37 mins: R Niland try 8-17; 40 mins: D Quigley pen 11-17. Half time. 52 mins: S Broughton drop gl. 11-20; 57 mins: Quigley pen 14-20; 58 mins: Stephens try 14-25; 63 mins; R Frost try 14-30; 73 mins: C McEntee try, Quigley con 21-30.

Lansdowne: B Geraghty; R Niland, L O'Brien, P Barry, R Dolan; M Woods, S Whelan; R Corrigan, R Fallon, E Bohan, B Cusack, G Quinn, S Rooney, H Goddard, C McEntee. Replacements: D Quigley for O'Brien (32 mins), O Ennis for Fallon (50 mins), A McKeen for Corrigan (50 mins), S Cusack for B Cusack (51 mins), K Becker for Dolan (55 mins), R Geraghty for Goddard (66 mins). S O'Donnell yellow card 44 mins.

DLSP: E Devitt; M Cross, S Stephens, D McCabe, M Vioreanu; S Broughton, B Hogan; K Condren, S Sarsfield, D Masters, R Frost, K Wheelock, D O'Brien, S O'Donnell, A Wood. Replace- ments: D Dobson for Condren (55 mins), P Werahiko for Sarsfield (55 mins); P Costello for Devitt (68 mins); A Toher for O'Brien (79 mins).

Referee: D Courtney (Leinster).