A real heavyweight collision

Lights, camera, action. All is set fair for one of the most eagerly awaited showdowns of this season's AIB All-Ireland League. The summit meeting between Shannon and Ballymena is a real heavyweight collision, and is most people's idea of a forerunner for the April 25th final at Lansdowne Road.

Accordingly, this will be only the second game in the league's history to be televised live, following that of the title decider between Young Munster and St Mary's five years ago. Ironically they too meet again in one of many intriguing ties. There's also a bit of a grudge match between Terenure and Blackrock, founded on mutual respect as much as loathing ever since they were weened into the game at their respective feeder schools. Upstarts Clontarf entertain third-placed Garryowen at Castle Avenue and even the second division programme features a host of 50-50 games.

But as Young Munster manager John "Packo" Fitzgerald concedes of the Thomond showdown - "That'll be a great game; there might only be a kick of the ball between them." Nor should RTE's live transmission unduly affect the attendance. Limerick rugby folk tend not to take a sedantary role when it comes to games like this, and a crowd in the region of 5,000 or more is anticipated.

They will come with an unusually quizzical air. What is to be made of Shannon, after their unexpected blip at Lansdowne last week? Will there be a reaction, in the time-honoured tradition of this league? Even more interestingly, what is to be made of this revitalised Ballymena, this Ulster in disguise? Has a juggernaut pack emerged, at last, who can storm the Thomond citadel for the first time in four seasons?

The last team to beat Shannon on their own patch was a Blackrock side in their Dean Oswald, Brendan Mullin inspired pomp in the 1993-94 season. But Shannon haven't lost at home since or to Ballymena since a 9-6 defeat in a bit of a relegation tussle (think of it?) courtesy of a late Stuart Laing penalty five years ago.

This though, is a Ballymena side that means business, and come to Limerick perched atop the first division after obliterating all but one of their opposition; scoring 30 tries and conceding just four in the process.

It doesn't take much to identify the source of Ballymena's strength. There's is a simple enough, South African style game founded on the coaching of Nelie Smith and a super fit team which is hardly ever tampered with (only 18 players have started in seven games, and there have been only four substitutions).

Two-thirds of their tries have been scored by the pack or scrumhalf Andy Matchett. Five of his seven tries have been the product of pushovers, to which can be added three penalty tries arising out of pushovers and three more for number eight Keith Gallick.

This is a pack that gets their kicks out of rubbing opposition noses into the ground, reputedly breaking into song as their scrum steamrollered Terenure over the line for a second time earlier this month. Intriguingly also, if there is one Achilles heel in the Shannon make-up it is perhaps their tight five and especially their scrum.

"That's good to hear," retorts Shannon coach Pat Murray, who believes no such weak spot exists. "Our tight five is powerful enough and I've no fears whatsoever about our scrum."

Moving away from the scrum and the pack, though not far in Ballymena's case, not only is Matchett effectively a fourth backrow forward, but out-half Derek McAleese is often used as a fifth - punching through himself one off the rucks in a straight line.

This could well be a tight and relatively low-scoring game given they are the two best defences around - each conceding only four tries apiece so far.

Shannon's primary strengths are the same as they ever were, namely the big runners up front like Anthony Foley, Eddie Halvey, Alan Quinlan and Mick Galwey - although unusually none of them have scored in the last three outings, while Halvey and Quinlan have yet to do so this season.

"It doesn't make any difference who scores," maintains Murray. "If they do enough work around the pitch others will score." Shannon have also added some additional strings to their bow in the McQuilkin-like defensive rock and support running of Rhys Ellison and the strike running out wide of John Lacey.

The advent of the play-off perhaps reduces the impact of this head-to-head as a potential title decider, though in another sense it adds to the intrigue given the desire for home advantage in the semi-final play-offs while today's loser will be sucked back into the pack.

"It's a four point game," admits Murray, who says the long unbeaten record is far from a monkey on Shannon shoulders. "I suppose there's always going to be a day when we lose (at Thomond Park). I just hope it's not Saturday. Maybe some time three or four years down the road, when they've put me out to pasture."

See also pages 4 and 5