Still all to play for as the end games draw near

RUGBY ULSTER BANK LEAGUE DIVISION ONE: JOHN O'SULLIVANon how it's all shaping up nicely for a grand finale as both potential winners and the club that will be relegated are still undecided

FATE PERIODICALLY offers a proprietary sense of occasion. That certainly seems to be the case in terms of the permutations that may be applied to the final three rounds of fixtures of the Ulster Bank League Division One A.

The conjecture covers both the potential winners and also the club that will be relegated on foot of finishing last.

Furthermore, the team that ends up second from bottom must negotiate a play-off – against the runner-up in Division One B – in order to retain their elite status for next season.

The days when the league format gave way to semi-finals and a final to decide the best club side in Ireland are gone, the tournament instead reverting to a previous guise when the champions were the side that finished top of the table.

Clontarf and St Mary’s College are perched at the top of the table, locked on the same number of points, going into Saturday’s matches – the north Dublin club have an appreciably superior points differential and the scenario is given further spice in that they’ll meet at Castle Avenue in the penultimate round of fixtures on Saturday, April 14th.

To lend an air of a cup final to that particular game, Clontarf and St Mary’s must first win their respective matches this weekend. ’Tarf are at home to Garryowen, while Mary’s must travel to Temple Hill.

Clontarf coach Andy Wood understands the folly of looking past the weekend: “It’s natural given the fixture list that people focus on the match against St Mary’s but that’s not something we can afford to do,” he says. “Garryowen are a good side and we’re certainly not going to underestimate them.

“They have been scoring a lot of tries and have a very tasty centre partnership and back three, just to highlight one area.

“Our attitude and goal has to be arriving at the Mary’s game with another victory and therefore making it as big a game as everyone else believes it could be.

“There’s no doubt that Mary’s have a tough fixture away to Con this weekend but the only thing that we can control is our own performance against Garryowen.”

He is optimistic that Sam Cronin (shoulder) and Killian Lett (shoulder) will be available but their excellent backrow Simon Crawford is awaiting a second scan on a damaged shoulder. He hasn’t been ruled out for the rest of the season but that prognosis may change depending on the results.

Clontarf will make the short journey to the Aviva Stadium, where they will take on Lansdowne on their synthetic surface in the final round of games on April 21st.

On paper, St Mary’s have the more difficult run-in as they head for Cork and then Castle Avenue, before finishing up against a Young Munster side that is currently lying in third place.

St Mary’s will take some consolation from the fact they beat Clontarf at Templeville Road earlier in the season, while at the same time mindful that it took a last-minute try to prevail 22-20.

Even a defeat this weekend wouldn’t spell the end of their hopes of outright honours but it would make the task considerably more difficult.

St Mary’s coach Peter Smyth may choose to point out to his charges it was in 2001 the club last won a match against Con in Temple Hill.

The good news is that he was playing that day and can share his experiences. The Clontarf game, though, will be a cup final, regardless.

At the other end of the table, bottom placed Old Belvedere’s victory over Garryowen last weekend, their first of the season, means they have clawed their way back to within a point of Blackrock College and six behind the club in third-last place, Shannon.

The Limerick club will have a pivotal influence on the relegation issue as they travel to face Belvedere at Anglesea Road this weekend and then on April 14th host Blackrock at Coonagh.

It promises to be a fascinating run-in at both ends of the table and hopefully in terms of crowds a return, even for an afternoon or three, to the more storied days of the league.