AMLIN CHALLENGE CUP Connacht 46 Olympus Madrid 6: NOBODY expects the Spanish Inquisition but, at the same time, there was little prospect of it materialising at the Sportsground last night.
After a bruising, soul-searching start to the season for Connacht, this opening match of the Amlin Challenge Cup came as a respite. It was always going to be a case of how much, and the opportunity to work on the fundamentals and run in a few tries can’t have done the Irish side any harm, whatever about any good.
Olympus Madrid is an invitational side comprising a selection of players from the national championship, and they came here with four of their stronger players absent through injury.
For 10 minutes, they illustrated what basic organisation and the application of the basics can do, thwarting Connacht’s advances, making their tackles and even engaging the Irish side in a long-range kicking game.
But as has been the case with previous visits by the Spanish side, there was a certain sense of going through the motions.
This was a mismatch and the nurturing of Spanish rugby remains a slow-burning project.
The closest the visitors came to the Connacht line in the first half came courtesy of a clever grubber kick by outhalf Jeremias Palumbo, bringing the Spaniards within five metres of the try line.
But as has been a feature this season, the Connacht lineout was assured and decisive and they broke away from their 22, with outhalf Conor O’Loughlin moving sharply onto an up-and-under spilled by Matias Tudela and releasing his back line, who moved it wide.
The 700 or so supporters who showed up longed for some Barbarian-style pyrotechnics, but the first-half tries were of the bread and butter variety. The best effort came when Mike McCarthy burst onto a slick, short pass from O’Loughlin and ran home unchallenged.
Outhalf Miah Nikorah varied his game in open play but seemed cursed in his first-half conversions: he missed two and, for good measure, hit both posts. When he finally profited on Niva Ta’auso’s 35th-minute try, he drew ironic cheers from the home crowd. The Sportsground rarely gets a chance to indulge in irony; it was a night for getting it all out.
The second half was predictable fare. The Spaniards came here realising that their best chance of scoring would come later on, in the taverns around Quay Street. However, they had already made the scoreboard thanks to two wonderfully-struck penalties from Palumbo.
Mistakes were inevitable; if Madrid lock Jesus Recuerdo ever comes to play in Ireland, he would surely become known as ‘Ah, Jesus, Recuerdo”.
Connacht failed to score for the first 25 minutes of the second half, despite the introduction of Ian Keatley and Frank Murphy in preparation for next Friday night’s crucial visit to Montpellier.
Secure on the scoreboard, they sought to run the ball, and although the Madrid tackling remained surprisingly enthusiastic, there was not much polish to the home game during this period.
But things clicked in the 65th minute, after Johnny O’Connor thundered through as far as the Madrid 22. Murphy made sharp use of the second phase and Brett Wilkinson ploughed through before Murphy switched wide to Troy Nathan. With the Spaniards stretched, nobody as going to catch Fionn Carr. The home side came to life after that.
Javier Arbelaiz stopped Troy Nathan with a thumping, last-man tackle after Keatley played him through with some delightful footwork. From the resulting scrum, Carr took possession, spied a gap and crossed the line untouched. (Arbelaiz left the field shortly afterwards, a shook man.)
Connacht kept pressing and Michael Swift was rewarded for an honest night’s work with the last try of the game.
It was a comfortable evening for the Connacht men, then, in the midst of a turbulent season.
Real life will come roaring back next week when they visit Montpellier, a game that will have a huge bearing on Connacht’s continental ambitions.
CONNACHT: G Duffy; T O'Halloran, N Ta'auso, A Wynne, F Carr; M Nikorah, C O'Loughlin; B Wilkinson, A Flavin, J Hagan; M Swift, B Upton; A Browne, J O'Connor; M McCarthy. Replacements: I Keatley for M Nikorah, F Murphy for C O'Loughlin (both 51 mins), R Loughney for J Hagan (55 mins), T Nathan for T O'Halloran (60 mins), D Murphy for A Flavin (63 mins).
OLYMPUS MADRID: M Mazo; M Tudela, B Pardo, J Canosa, J Cano; J Palumbo, P Feijoo; V Acevado, JM Bohorquez, A Onega; L Fernandez-Aramburu, J Recuerda; M Acena, J Gonzalez; S Guerrero. Replacements: S Hattori for JM Borhorquez (51 mins), J Arbelaiz for A Onega (52 mins), M Poggi for B Pardo (56 mins), A Onega for V Acevedo (61 mins inj), M Heredia for A Acena (62 mins), C Arenas for P Feijoo, JM Bohorquez for J Arbelaiz (both 72 mins).
Referee: S Falzone.
