Traditional powerhouses set to meet in last eight

RUGBY:"IT DOESN'T quite keep me awake at night but at the time it was the be all and end all." Brian O'Driscoll tried to put the Powerade Leinster Schools' Cup into some context last night but it does still cause many grown men sleepless nights despite the rest of their schooldays being distant memories. Maybe this is because it represents their first exposure to utter despair. Defeat gets a little easier to swallow as you get older.

Either way, it remains an enduring and compelling competition to certain sections of Irish society as “The Cup” enters its 125th year of existence. The draw at the Aviva Stadium was conducted by O’Driscoll along with two men, Rob Kearney and Andrew Conway, who showed initial glimpses of their vast array of skills as schoolboy fullbacks with Clongowes Wood College and Blackrock College respectively.

The long-established powerhouses are due to cross paths in a mouth-watering quarter-final after both were handed opening-round qualifier opponents.

For the second year running, Blackrock are not the favourites. Clongowes are the defending champions, they also won the Junior Cup three years ago, and have several returning from last year’s excellent team, including a hugely-talented backrow.

The look of the draw is extremely bottom heavy with last year’s runners-up St Michael’s College due to provide semi-final opposition to whoever wins the Blackrock versus Clongowes collision, but only if they find a route past Belvedere College and, probably, St Mary’s College.

Terenure College must be the most content with the draw as they find themselves in the top half with an opening tie against Gonzaga College.

In the Junior Cup, defending champions Terenure will meet Clongowes in the opening game with Blackrock or St Mary’s potential opponents in the semi-final.

After the formalities, RTÉ rugby pundit Brent Pope took to the stage to quiz O’Driscoll, Kearney and Conway about their schooldays. O’Driscoll – who was famously dropped from the Blackrock “Dream Team” for the semi-final and final in 1996 and then gained infamy for striking his fourth wayward drop goal off the upright in the last seconds of the 1997 semi-final defeat to Gordon D’Arcy’s Clongowes – was asked who were the best schools player he played alongside. He mentioned 1996 captain Barry Gibney and current Blackrock coach Peter Smyth before settling for former Irish international scrumhalf Ciarán Scally.

Despite the reopening of the stadium on Lansdowne Road, the traditional St Patrick’s Day final will remain at the RDS.

Before we departed, Pope asked O’Driscoll if he ever dreamt back then he would be where he is now.

“In my final year in school I was a boarder in Blackrock and all I remember was, as we were doing our leaving cert, the ’97 Lions tour was on in South Africa. The possibility of being on the next Lions tour was not in my mind. I was just trying to enjoy my rugby. I went on to UCD and got capped when I was still in UCD. It snowballed from there.”

Fr Godfrey Cup

A: De La Salle College v CBS Naas; B: Wesley College v Skerries Community College; C: East Glendalough v Cistercian College Roscrea; D: Templeogue College v St Gerard’s School; E: The High School v Kings Hospital School; F: CUS/Gonzaga (Loser) v Presentation College Bray.

Quarter-finals: B v C, D v E.

Semi-finals: A v B/C, D/E v F.

Junior Cup

A: Clongowes Wood College v Terenure College, B: CUS/Gonzaga College (Winner) v Qualifier One, C: Kilkenny College v St Mary’s College, D: Blackrock College v CBC Monkstown, E: Qualifier Three v Newbridge College, F: Qualifier Four v Belvedere College, G: St Andrew’s College v St Michael’s College, H: Qualifier Two v Castleknock College. Quarter-finals: A v B, C v D, E v F, G v H. Semi-finals: A/B v C/D, E/F v G/H.

Vinnie Murray Cup

A: Templeogue College v Wesley College, B: High School v CBC Monkstown, C: St Andrew’s College v CUS, D: Sandford Park v Skerries Community College, E: Newpark Comprehensive School v Presentation Bray, F: Mount Temple v Kings Hospital/Newbridge (Loser), G: De La Salle Churchtown.

Quarter-finals: B v C, D v E, F v G.

Semi-finals: A v B/C, D/E v F/G.