Rugby: Clongowes - 10 Newbridge - 3 The afternoon began on a sombre note, with Lansdowne Road hushed in tribute as players, supporters and officials acknowledged the tragic death of Tyrone Gaelic footballer Cormac McAnallen. It was an appropriate gesture from a group of young sportsmen to an individual who had accomplished so much in his 24 years.
Clongowes Wood College entered this Kildare spat as favourites, but by the end they were clinging on to a precarious advantage by their fingernails.
It was a classic contest, one of the best schools matches of recent vintage, that offered a contrast of styles: Clongowes sought the wide open spaces, Newbridge College were content with a more direct approach, though no less compelling. For the neutral it was never less than enthralling, nerve-shredding for the partisan.
It seems trite to reflect on Newbridge's gallantry in defeat, given the fine line that separated them from a place in the final, but they should be proud of yesterday's performance. They rocked Clongowes to their back teeth, out muscling them up front, dominating possession for large stretches but, crucially, just failing to retain enough composure and patience when they rumbled to within touching distance of their opponents' line.
The Newbridge pack offered a classic illustration of how to employ the pick and drive, and from loosehead prop Brendan O'Shea to number eight Cathal Doyle had eight forwards whose work ethic and technical excellence made them an irresistible force.
Time and again they cut a swathe through the heart of the Clongowes pack, racking up the yardage. Hindsight suggests that when they were backed by the strong breeze in the first half they would have been better employed using the prodigious boot of outhalf David Aherne to offer good field position rather than trying to batter their way 60 yards without a handling error.
Not that Newbridge were one-dimensional. IFionn Carr they possessed a centre with pace and a tidy sidestep, and they did look to use their back three. They simply lacked the cutting edge of their opponents.
Clongowes remain true to tradition. It would be possible to throw a blanket over the entire pack when they are rucking. Despite being physically dwarfed by their opponents, they were tenacious, and in Declan Halpin and Doug Fagan had powerful ball carriers.
Led by captain Paddy O'Meara, the pack tackled themselves to a standstill - and they had to, quite simply because they were under so much pressure.
Newbridge destroyed the Clongowes lineout, tweaked their scrum and put scrumhalf Louis Ronan under huge pressure.
But the panacea for all Clongowes' shortcomings up front can be encapsulated in two words: Robert Kearney. He is an outstanding talent.
The full back scored one of the great tries seen at the international venue. O'Meara surged off the back of a scrum, Fagan made the hard yards and then Ronan drifted along the halfway line before flicking a neat reverse pass to Kearney.
He picked his way through a cluttered corridor of players untouched, swept into the open spaces, and with a swivel of hips and gliding acceleration left Garry Delahunt and Rob Kerrigan choking in his vapour trail. That he hit the post with his touchline conversion, into the breeze, was a minor aberration.
Clongowes played some wonderfully entertaining rugby, backs and forward interlinking, and centres Fergus McFadden and Dan O'Connor were eye-catching, elusive runners.
It was appropriate McFadden grabbed their second try on 50 minutes, finishing off a lightning raid on the shortside that began just outside the Newbridge 22.
Newbridge, who trailed 5-0 at the interval, had reduced the deficit just three minutes into the second half with an excellent penalty from Aherne.
But they just couldn't manage that decisive breach. The final quarter was white-knuckle time for the Clongowes fans.
SCORING SEQUENCE - 9 mins: Kearney try, 5-0. Half-time: 5-0. 38: Aherne penalty, 5-3; 50: McFadden try, 10-3.
CLONGOWES WOOD COLLEGE: R Kearney; R McIlwee, F McFadden, D O'Connor, K Stafford; P Casey, L Ronan; D Halpin, M Jacobs, P Crilly; T Shiels, D Fagan; B Coyle, P O'Meara (capt), P Lennon. Replacement: J Rooney for Coyle (66 mins).
NEWBRIDGE COLLEGE: G Delahunt; R Kerrigan, S Roe, F Carr, M Neylon; D Aherne, S Cleere; B O'Shea, N Barton, B Shanaghan; M Kindregan, S Griffin; D Miley, C Doyle, R Mulryan. Replacements: B Grady for Kindregan (half-time); M Healy for Kerrigan (55 mins).
Referee: A Rogan (Leinster).
