Young guns find the comfort zone

There is little doubt that coach George Hook has talent at his disposal at Blackrock. Young, dynamic and often refreshingly reckless, the visitors to Lakelands moved further into the comfort zone of mid table. Survival is Blackrock's goal this year, and this win was a big two points for a side who were sitting perilously close to the wrong end of the division.

"I have really only one game plan for the year," Hook said. "It has to be survival. Anything else is a pure bonus." The garrulous coach had his team purring following an opening exchange in which the Terenure pack seemed set to dominate events as they pushed Blackrock in the scrums with terrifying ease. By the end of the game, however, it had taken a fierce display of defiance by Terenure to have kept Blackrock to just 20 points.

"It's a young side, an extraordinarily young side," added Hook. "They all think they can walk on water. As a coach you say, `Why don't you just pass it two metres?' They say, `Well we can pass it 20'.

"The majority of this team is here for three or fours years, provided that the rugby union of Ireland recognises that these players should play the bulk of their rugby in Ireland and not elsewhere. The Leicesters and the Quins of this world have to be looking at some of these kids."

Nikki Assaf made a welcome if cautious return on the wing for Blackrock just after half-time, but it was mainly the kicking precision of centre Brian Carey, who found some tremendous touch from the hand, and the place-kicking of Owen Cobbe, who put the shape on this game.

Shane Byrne also showed a greater degree of fitness and dynamism around the park, and the number of rucks won through his agency greatly helped to construct Blackrock's winning platform. His performance also urged Hook to take a swipe at the Irish selectors: "If Damien Geraghty is a better player than Shane Byrne I'll eat my hat. And I'd love you to quote me on that," he declared.

Cobbe opened the scoring after two minutes, before Terenure out-half Shane Cullen quickly equalised in an opening exchange of penalties. Cobbe nosed his side ahead again in the 11th minute and added a drop goal under pressure for a 9-3 score when the ball was recycled following a break from left wing Aidan Guinan.

But Terenure then pinned Blackrock to their line in the home side's strongest phase of the match. After four put-ins on the line, referee Bertie Smith rightly awarded a penalty try. Out-half Cobbe was then good again from wide left as Blackrock went into the break 10-12 ahead.

It was the final 30 minutes exchange that won the game for Blackrock. Terenure struggled to find a flow, and even with the creative instincts of Paul Hennebry being added in the 50th minute, the home side failed to find any real consistency or pattern.

Just after the hour, Blackrock pounded the Terenure line with Cobbe, David Quinlan, Dec Kavanagh and David Moore each launching themselves from five yards out. Finally Cobbe took another penalty opportunity.

Minutes later, Guinan gathered from a scrum in his half, glided through midfield and ran 70 yards for the coup de grace touchdown 10 minutes from the whistle.

Scoring sequence: 2 mins: O Cobbe penalty, 0-3; 3: S Cullen penalty, 3-3; 11: O Cobbe penalty 3-6; 16: O Cobbe drop goal 3-9; 25: Terenure penalty try, conversion D Hegarty 109; 37: O Cobbe penalty 10-12. 67: O Cobbe penalty 10-15; 68: A Guinan try 10-20; 72: R O'Connor penalty 13-20.

Terenure: C Clarke; G Dempsey, C De Gascun, R Browne, R O'Connor; S Cullen, D Hegarty; B Campbell, J Blaney, P Bruce, R Sheriff, P Holden, J Kelly (capt), I walsh, G Sheehan. Replacements: P Hennebry for Cullen (49 mins), B Kavanagh for Walsh (55 mins), J McNiff for Hegarty (61 mins).

Blackrock: T Keating; P Dunne, B Carey, D Quinlan, A Guinan; O Cobbe, D Grennell; P Flavin, S Byrne, P Jordan, H Kos (capt), L Cullen, J Ryan, T Goldfinch, D Moore. Replacements: D Kavanagh for Flavin (40 mins), N Assaf for Dunne (45 mins).

Referee: R McDowell (MRA)