Terenure brought back to earth

A game which promised much ultimately failed to deliver, and a Terenure performance which promised much also fell away anti-climactically. It was all so predictable really. Lansdowne, coached, cajoled and criticised from the sideline by Donal Spring, and organised on the pitch by Kurt McQuilkin, were more resilient, stubborn foes than the side which gave Blackrock a bloodless coup last week.

They hung in there, and Rory Kearns' equalising 83rd minute penalty with the last kick of the game gave them something tangible from which to rebuild a faltering season.

Just as predictably, Terenure couldn't scale the heights of the defeat of St Mary's. In time-honoured fashion, they could have lost the match, although they will have felt they did in any case. It was largely their own doing.

They had begun full of positive intentions and at breakneck speed against an equally willing, if not always as proficient, Lansdowne. Though scoreless, the first quarter passed quickly, with plenty of thrust and counter-thrust.

An early surge up the line by Terenure hooker James Blaney, effectively used as an auxiliary back, set the tempo. Although McQuilkin quickly retorted, it was Terenure who were setting the tone. Ciaran Clarke frequently hit the line at pace, but his breaks were starved of support runners.

Although handling errors and turnovers increased as the match wore on, Lansdowne were the more culpable. The major difference between the sides was the close-in ball handling, support play and ability to release in the tackle of the mobile Terenure forwards.

Donal Hyland, Pat Holden and Brendan Kavanagh featured prominently in a sustained wave of attacking, taking in seven rucks, which yielded an early penalty for Peter Walsh. But he stroked it wide from 10 metres inside the right touchline.

Augmenting their pack's good work around the paddock, Paul Hennebry kicked sweetly, rolling his kicks in behind the wingers to the corners with unerring accuracy. Though Spring, McQuilkin and co were audibly attempting to revive Richard Governey's confidence, and there were some distinct signs of an escape from his current trough, Hennebry provided a greater presence.

After one steal on the ground by Hyland, Hennebry's skip pass released Cullen, but, as with Clarke's unsupported breaks, the Lansdowne cover were up to the task. The pressure was maintained though, and huge kicks by Hennebry and Clarke swiftly sent Lansdowne scurrying back into their territory.

The chances had to come, and strong running by Kavanagh, Blaney and Holden resulted in near identikit, 24-metre penalties for Walsh when Lansdowne handled on the ground. Michael Smyth took on a loose pass from Hegarty to earn a third penalty at the breakdown, which Walsh landed, but Kearns opened Lansdowne's account on halftime, and gradually their spoiling in the rucks denied Terenure their continuity as the fastidious David Tyndall ensured the second-half degenerated into largely a setpiece affair.

On this evidence, the set-pieces are not Terenure's strong point. They lost at least five balls off Blaney's throw (one from close-in during the second period), had to scramble for a few more and overplayed back-row moves off a less than dominant scrum.

Lansdowne's were much better, and the O'Connor brothers easily plucked Bobby McCoy's throws. Twice opting for the chance of five or seven points, they were convinced they had them after 46 minutes when Stephen O'Connor was driven over the line from a short-range take. But Tyndall called it honestly and as he saw it, or couldn't possibly see it. Other unsighted referees too often take the easier option.

Lansdowne then battered away through their scrum, but Terenure held out, and Clarke relieved the siege by nailing Shane Horgan after he'd stepped inside Cullen. But Girvan Dempsey was harshly adjudged to have tackled McCoy late when the hooker ran into him. Tyndall said he had to "get out of his way", and Kearns brought the score to 9-6.

Another expert Hennebry kick to the corner forced Ray Niland to concede a five-metre scrum, and there they camped for much of the last 13 minutes. Their conservatism in opting for a kick at goal was compounded when Walsh pulled a penalty wide from all of 15 metres slightly to the right of the posts. And, for all the blindside darts, only Derek Hegarty came close with a sniping break.

Hence, the finale was almost ordained. Governey released Dillon with an excellent long pass, and though Smyth hauled him down after he beat Clarke, from the ensuing scrum Colin McEntee broke and Terenure were inevitably penalised by Tyndall, seemingly for offside. Kearns extracted a point for Lansdowne's efforts.

Scoring sequence: 29 mins: Walsh penalty 0-3; 31 mins: Walsh penalty; 38 mins: Walsh penalty 0-9; 40 mins: Kearns penalty 3-9; 58 mins: Kearns penalty 6-9; 83 mins: Kearns penalty 9-9.

Lansdowne: R Kearns; M Dillon, S Horgan, K McQuilkin, R Niland; R Governey, D O'Mahony; W O'Kelly, B McCoy, A McKeen, S O'Connor, P O'Connor, S Rooney, C McEntee, A Doyle. Replacements: A McCullen for S O'Connor (50 mins), C Egan for McCoy (58 mins), E Bohan for O'Kelly (61 mins).

Terenure: C Clarke; G Dempsey, S Cullen, M Smyth, P Walsh; P Hennebry, D Hegarty; D Hyland, J Blaney, P Bruce, R Sheriff, P Holden, J Kelly (capt), G Sheehan, B Kavanagh. Replacements: B O'Doherty-Campbell for Hyland (64 mins).

Referee: D Tyndall (Leinster).