King's Hospital lived out a dream for 35 minutes of yesterday's match at Donnybrook, a period in which the overwhelming underdogs would triumph in adversity. In the first half they fostered those ambitions with tremendous application, skill and invention and perhaps were a shade unfortunate to trail 14-12 at the interval.
That the second half panned out differently can be attributed to Blackrock College's general performance and the attrition levels that robbed the energy from the legs of the physically slighter King's Hospital pack. It was a wonderful effort but credit too to Blackrock whose grip on the proceedings tightened considerably in the second half.
The match literally exploded into life on 46 seconds when King's Hospital outhalf Philip Caldwell timed his pass beautifully to put centre and captain Ronan Sheridan racing through a gap and the latter demonstrated great pace to cover the last 30 metres untouched. It was a stunning try, due to a combination of Caldwell's ability to get the ball away despite a double tackle and Sheridan's angle of running.
There was further bad news for Blackrock in that outhalf Michael Cantrell suffered concussion in the build-up to the try and had to be replaced by Conor Sharpe. Sheridan missed the conversion but Blackrock knew that they were in a contest. They responded in the fashion of champions, using the driving of their powerful pack to forge into their opponents' 22 and then ruthlessness of execution.
Right wing Daire Higgins grabbed their first try - John Ronan showed great hands to keep the move going - and the second came from their exceptional number eight and captain Michael Carroll. He would grab two more in the course of the afternoon. Flanker Philip van Esbeck converted both, his place-kicking in the blustery conditions superb.
Only 12 minutes had elapsed and one sensed that Blackrock might force King's Hospital to pay dearly for their early audacity. King 's Hospital did not subscribe to the general consensus and continued to slice through the Blackrock midfield, generally at the instigation of their diminutive outhalf, Caldwell, who enjoyed a brilliant first half. His frequent cameos were facilitated by the work ethic of the pack in which Emmet Wardell and Clive Hannan were outstanding.
Caldwell's quick tap penalty eight metres from the Blackrock line on 28 minutes culminated in a try for Alan Trenier that Sheridan converted. Blackrock though delivered a telling blow three minutes after the restart, when Carroll forced his way over following powerful driving by his colleagues up front. Van Esbeck converted, and provided with some breathing space, the winners largely controlled the second half, save for a brief King's Hospital surge.
Carroll's third try on 55 minutes ensured that Blackrock could enjoy the closing exchanges in relative comfort: a thoroughly entertaining game and a credit to both teams.
Scoring sequence: 1 min: Sheridan try, 5-0; 7: Higgins try, van Esbeck conversion, 5-7; 12: Carroll try, van Esbeck conversion, 5-14; 28: Trenier try , Sheridan conversion, 12-14. Half-time 12-14. 38: Carroll try, van Esbeck conversion, 12-21; 55: Carroll try, 12-26.
BLACKROCK COLLEGE: M Olima; D Higgins, R McCormack, J Ronan, K O'Leary; M Cantrell, D Geraghty; D Burke, S Delaney, J Danagher; C Davis, D Gannon; J Conway, M Carroll (capt), P van Esbeck. Replacements: C Sharpe for Cantrell 5 mins; G Hegarty for Delaney 44 mins; G Fitzgerald for Burke 58 mins; R Molly for Geraghty 58 mins; P Mulrean for Ronan 67 mins.
KING'S HOSPITAL: S Rand; C Glynn, J Wynne, R Sheridan (capt), F Gillespie; P Caldwell, K Sothern; J Schnittger, D Myers, P Jones; E Wardell, A Trenier; J Broadhead, O Ekuma-Nkama, C Hannan. Replacements: D Bennett for Jones 60 mins; C McClean for Broadhead 60 mins.
Referee: T Redmond (Leinster).
