Editor’s note (21 Feb): Patrick Tuipulotu was cleared of doping and his provisional suspension lifted on 9 February after tests on his B-sample showed no presence of a banned substance. Read the report in full here.

ALL BLACKS LOCK Patrick Tuipulotu has been suspended following a positive drugs test, New Zealand Rugby has revealed.

Tuipulotu returned to New Zealand before the All Blacks Test against France on their northern hemisphere tour last November for what was described then as “personal reasons.”

New Zealand Rugby (NZR) and the New Zealand Rugby Players Association (NZRPA) have now confirmed they were notified of a positive test in November and the 24-year-old Tuipulotu was “shocked” by the result.

“A doping control sample provided by Patrick Tuipulotu had, reportedly, revealed the presence of a specified substance listed on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s 2016 prohibited list,” the joint statement read.

“NZR and NZRPA can confirm that Patrick was shocked by the test result and is working hard to identify the source of the specified substance.

“In accordance with World Rugby Anti-Doping regulations, Patrick remains provisionally suspended pending resolution of this matter.”

Fairfax Media reported Monday that it understood the result of a B-sample test was not yet known “and much will hinge on that”.

Tuipulotu played against Ireland in Chicago and against Italy in Rome on the end of season tour before returning home for what coach Steve Hansen said was “personal reasons”.

The second-row forward has played 12 Tests and is signed with NZR until the end of the 2019 season.

– © AFP 2017

‘There’s still a championship there for us’ – Jackson eyes Italian job after Scottish defeatIreland lead the Six Nations after their great escape in Scotland

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IF CONOR O’SHEA wasn’t fully aware of the size of the task on his hands at the helm of Italian rugby, then he almost certainly is now after two deflating defeats.

The Italian head coach cut a forlorn figure at his post-match press conference yesterday as he fronted up to questions about his team’s performance after their heavy, nine-try loss to Ireland.

It wasn’t so much the result which was most disappointing, but the manner in which the hosts meekly rolled over without any sort of fight to slump to a second consecutive home defeat in this Six Nations.

You’re really got to feel for the former Ireland international.

The Azzurri would have come into this Championship buoyed by encouraging results in November, including that historic win over South Africa, but they appear to have taken one step forward, two steps back.

Sitting alongside captain Sergio Parisse, O’Shea was brutally honest in his assessment.

“We are proud people sitting up here and we don’t like today,” he said.

Italy were unable to deal with Ireland in Rome yesterday. Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

“I hate days like this but we know what we have to do and we are working together for Italian rugby. Today was hard, it’s a different challenge. That Ireland team is better than the Welsh team we played, 100%.”

“In the first 20 minutes we took a battering, today was an incredibly hard day. There will be mistakes we made in terms of the set-piece and almost inviting pressure. We talked about Ireland’s ability to hold onto the ball through a lot of phases, which is different to Wales. That first 20 minutes they were outstanding, we had a lot of difficulties. After eight, nine or 10 phases, someone will make an error and the score will come but credit to Ireland for taking it through the phases.

O’Shea now has the task of picking his troops back up and preparing for a trip to Twickenham, where another hammering will be on the cards if Italy don’t make huge improvements across the board.

The former Harlequins DOR continued: ”I’m not going to sit beside Sergio and talk about a long-term project because I know this group have some great days in them but we have to learn, get mentally stronger and we have a lot to change in Italian rugby to get that.

O’Shea has a huge task on his hands. Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

“But I could name a lot of players in the 1990s who were great Irish rugby players and without the right support they were not able to fulfil what they were capable of doing. We have a really good group of players, people will smile wryly and hang their heads but we will never change our heads and intention to fight tooth and nail to make the changes and also get some short-terms results.

“It’s very tough today but we must be ready in two week’s time ahead of the England match. The focus must be our next job and our next job is England at Twickenham in two weeks.”

“Anyone involved in turning businesses around know there are things that have to happen.”

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Munster 25Ospreys 23

By Alex Bywater

MUNSTER MOVED BACK to the top of the Guinness Pro12 table after a dramatic 25-23 success over the Ospreys at the Liberty Stadium.

Dave Kilcoyne’s late try sealed victory for Rassie Erasmus’ side, the prop finding his way to the line with just two minutes to go to level the scores at 23-23. Captain Tyler Bleyendaal then added the conversion to ensure his team edged a game in which they spent large periods on the back foot.

Tries from Hanno Dirksen and Kieron Fonotia had put the Ospreys ahead early on, with Jack O’Donoghue and Francis Saili replying for Munster. The rest of the points came from Bleyendaal and his opposite number Sam Davies, but in the end prop Kilcoyne came up trumps for the men in red.

Munster went into the break only trailing 20-18, but that didn’t tell the full story of a first half which saw the Irish side slow out of the blocks.

Home tries from Dirksen and Fonotia and two conversions and a penalty from Davies put the Ospreys 17-3 up, Munster’s only response coming from an early Bleyendaal penalty.

Francis Saili scored Munster’s second. Source: Camerasport/Simon King/INPHO

Erasmus’ men made 105 tackles in the first period to just 35 from the Ospreys but remarkably, they turned around just two points behind.

Ashley Beck saw a third try ruled out for the home side but with the Ospreys guilty of overplaying in key areas, Munster hit back. Bleyendaal’s second penalty of the day narrowed their deficit and quick tries from No 8 O’Donoghue and centre Saili put them right back in contention.

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Bleyendaal had converted Saili’s score, but the start of the second period was a tight affair and it took until just before the hour mark for the first points to come. Saili had been lucky to avoid a yellow card in preventing Ashley Beck from scoring with a no-arms tackle, but Davies’ 59^th minute penalty was some consolation as he extended his team’s lead from 35 metres out.

The Wales fly-half’s effort looked to have given the Ospreys victory, but Munster never went away.

Munster players before kick-off. Source: Camerasport/Simon King/INPHO

They dominated possession and territory late on and eventually Kilcoyne broke through.

Bleyendaal still needed to add the extras, but he did just that to seal victory for his team.

OSPREYS: Evans (Leonard 52); Giles (John 54), Fonotia, Beck, Dirksen; Davies, Habberfield (capt); Smith (James 63), Baldwin (Parry 54), Jones (Suter 58), Ashley (Ardron 66), Thornton, Cracknell (Baker 53), Underhill, King

Replacement not used: Price

MUNSTER: Keatley (Conway 46); Sweetman, Saili, Scannell, O’Mahony (Goggin 73); Bleyendaal (capt), Williams; Kilcoyne (McCabe 79), Marshall (O’Byrne 54), Ryan (Archer 75), O’Shea (Foley 46), Holland, O’Callaghan, O’Donnell (Oliver 71), O’Donoghue

Replacement not used: Griesel

Referee: Marius Mitrea (Italy)

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THOSE OF US on the outside of the professional game often look to linebreaks, missed tackles and tries conceded as barometers of defensive performance, but Ireland’s Andy Farrell doesn’t always drill into those details.

He wants his team to make every one of their tackle attempts, of course, but he also mentions scoring tries when you ask him how he assesses his team’s defensive displays.

“What type of pressure that we put on the opposition, how we’re making the opposition feel,” says Farrell when asked what his barometers are.

Andy Farrell speaks to Johnny Sexton this week. Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

“Tries, as I’ve said before, they come in all shapes and sizes. There’s all sorts of different reasons why systems are something that we concentrate on a hell of a lot.

“We want to attack, we do, with our defence – we want to attack and get the ball back and we want to score tries through pressure. Now, that isn’t being reckless in our approach, we’ve got to be smart at the same time.”

We have seen much evidence of the kind of things Farrell wants to see in defence from Ireland since he joined the coaching staff in April of last year.

Aggressive linespeed across the board, wings hammering up hard on the edge even when Ireland are numbers down – perhaps because they are numbers down – attempts to dislodge the ball in contact.

The only issue is that the application has not always been consistent. Bringing an incredibly aggressive defensive approach requires huge energy – both mental and physical – and Ireland have dipped on occasions.

“We did struggle with a bit of width,” says Farrell of the defeat to Scotland in the opening round of the Six Nations. “There’s always a reason for that and one of the main reasons is what speed’s the ball coming at.

“In attack, you want quick ball and you get the defence on the back foot. In defence, you want to slow ball down and that’s entry, whether you can be dominant in your tackles, slow the ball down, it gives you time to get your width back.”

That said, it should be noted that CJ Stander added almost six seconds to the ruck preceding the second Stuart Hogg try for Scotland, after a carry from Josh Strauss that just about dented the gainline.

With their 1-3-3-1 shape ensuring they constantly look to maintain width, the French could be a threat to Ireland near the touchlines today [KO 4.50pm], but Farrell isn’t always looking for exceptional width in Ireland’s defence.

‘Faz’ is well liked by the Ireland squad. Source: Dan Sheridan/INPHO

“It isn’t just about width. Everyone’s obsessed with width but if you get too wide they play through and this French side can certainly play through you as well.

“What we’ve seen throughout the autumn and in the two games so far is dominant carries with offloads, which is short gain and playing through you, and they hit you on the counter-attack as well, so we’ve got to be ready for everything.”

ENGLAND WOMEN WILL be without their captain Katy McLean for the remainder of the Six Nations after the out-half was suspended for three weeks by tournament organisers.

The 31-year-old was shown a red card for a dangerous tackle during England’s win over Italy at the weekend and today appeared before a Disciplinary Committee, who found her guilty of breaking Law 10.4(e).

McLean pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted she had committed an act of foul play which was worth of a red card.

“The Disciplinary Committee, chaired by Roger Morris (Wales), alongside Jennifer Donovan (Ireland) and Julien Berenger (France), having reviewed the footage of the incident and all other evidence, as well as hearing submissions from the player and her representatives, categorised the offending as mid-range, which carries a six week entry point in World Rugby’s sanction table,” a Six Nations statement read.

“The Committee further determined that there were no aggravating factors and the player had met all mitigating factors permitted, and therefore decided to reduce the entry point by three weeks.”

England have won all three games and currently top the table from Ireland on points difference. The two sides meet in Dublin on the final weekend for a potential Grand Slam decider at Donnybrook.

Source: The42 Rugby Show/SoundCloud

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ENGLAND COACH EDDIE Jones has named Billy Vunipola on the bench for their Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland in Twickenham on Saturday (kick-off 4pm, RTÉ Two).

The number eight made his return to competitive rugby last weekend with Saracens having overcome a knee injury, but has not taken Nathan Hughes’s place in what is an unchanged pack.

There are, however, three changes to the backline that eventually overcame Italy last time out with Jonathan Joseph reinstated at outside-centre, Jack Nowell named on the right wing and Ben Youngs starting at scrum-half.

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Anthony Watson also makes the match day 23 for the first time this campaign and he and Vunipola are joined by Danny Care and Ben Te’o as the only other changes to the bench.

Joe Marler will win his 50th cap and will lead the team out of the tunnel in what is the 124th edition of the Calcutta Cup.

The only change made by Vern Cotter comes through the injury absence of John Hardie, leaving Hamish Watson to wear the number seven jersey for the third time in this Championship.

England

15. Mike Brown
14. Jack Nowell
13. Jonathan Joseph
12. Owen Farrell
11. Elliot Daly
10. George Ford
9. Ben Youngs

1. Joe Marler
2. Dylan Hartley (captain)
3. Dan Cole
4. Joe Launchbury
5. Courtney Lawes
6. Maro Itoje
7. James Haskell
8. Nathan Hughes

Replacements:

16. Jamie George
17. Mako Vunipola
18. Kyle Sinckler
19. Tom Wood
20. Billy Vunipola
21. Danny Care
22. Ben Te’o
23. Anthony Watson

Scotland

15. Stuart Hogg
14. Tommy Seymour
13. Huw Jones
12. Alex Dunbar
11. Tim Visser
10. Finn Russell
9. Ali Price

1. Gordon Reid
2. Fraser Brown
3. Zander Fagerson
4. Richie Gray
5. Jonny Gray
6. John Barclay (Capt.)
7. Hamish Watson
8. Ryan Wilson

IT WAS ALWAYS likely that Italy’s use of the ‘tackle only’ tactic against England in round three of the Six Nations would spark others into giving it a go.

Amateur teams around the world have been refusing the ruck in recent weeks, while it has been mimicked by several professional sides, with Joe Schmidt’s Ireland among the latest to attempt it.

Sean O’Brien was the chief culprit in this area of Ireland’s game against Wales on Friday night in Cardiff, but the Tullow man didn’t quite get the reward he was hoping for with his efforts.

The first instance comes below, in the second minute of the game and with Wales looking to exit their 22 for the first time.

Jake Ball carries off a Rhys Webb pass infield and away from the touchline, with Donnacha Ryan tackling the Wales lock to ground.

As soon as Ryan has completed the tackle, O’Brien is screaming, “Tackle only!”

Indeed, that’s exactly what the situation is below.

CJ Stander does briefly put his hand on Ross Moriarty, who is arriving over the tackle for Wales, as we see below.

It’s arguable whether Moriarty is actually ‘on his feet’ here in the first place, but Stander is keen not to allow Barnes to read this as a ruck situation, so he instantly removes his hands and shows the referee that he has done so.

Remember, to form a ruck – and therefore the offside line – we need one player from each team on their feet, in physical contact, closing around the ball on the ground.

While Stander’s hands do come into contact with Moriarty briefly, he’s not making a genuine effort to come into a contest over the ball and Barnes appears to be satisfied there is no ruck – even if he doesn’t say anything to that effect.

At this stage, O’Brien has screamed, “Tackle only” four times and, despite not getting any confirmation from Barnes that that is the case, he proceeds up and around the tackle area, making sure he doesn’t approach Wales scrum-half Rhys Webb.

Over on the other side of Webb, Conor Murray advances and Ireland have created something of a wall around the Welshman.

There is still some uncertainty here for Ireland, with Jack McGrath to the right of the tackle staying in an ‘onside’ position and asking Barnes, “Tackle only?” just before Webb picks the ball up.

Barnes doesn’t provide any confirmation for Ireland either way, but he allows play to continue and it’s clear that Webb’s options are limited here.

O’Brien is in a good position to block or intercept a possible pass backwards to out-half Dan Biggar, while Murray is closing off passing or sniping space to his right.

Remember, O’Brien and Murray cannot approach the ball, as that would mean entering the one-metre ‘tackle zone’ around the tackle without coming through the ‘gate’ – penalty against Ireland.

While it was always likely that Webb would have box kicked from this position anyway, Ireland’s tactics appear to slightly fluster him and his kick is poor, low and straight into the waiting arms of Keith Earls to run back at Wales on kick return.

Ireland can count this first use of the tackle only tactic as a promising success.

Two minutes later, O’Brien calls, “Tackle only!” again as Wales build another exit, but does so before the tackle on Rob Evans has even been completed.

As we see above, Stander recognises the opportunity for a turnover and jackals, with the arriving Welsh players engaging with him over the ball to form what is clearly a ruck.

Stander is unlucky not to win the turnover or a penalty, with Wales just doing enough to cling onto possession.

O’Brien’s next effort comes in the ninth minute, again as Wales look to build up to an exiting kick out of their 22 – clearly underlining that Ireland have decided to attempt this tactic specifically in this area of the pitch, as the Chiefs did when they first used it in Super Rugby in 2015.

This time, however, O’Brien gets it wrong and the result is a damaging penalty against Ireland.

Moriarty is the ball carrier for Wales off a well-executed lineout five metres from their tryline and he powers into the tackle of Stander, who puts him to ground.

Crucially, though, Stander remains on his feet and then looks to jackal over the ball again.

As soon as Tomas Francis arrives in to clear Stander away, we have a ruck.

“A ruck is a phase of play where one or more players from each team, who are on their feet, in physical contact, close around the ball on the ground,” says the World Rugby lawbook.

We clearly have that here and, as we know, a ruck forms the offside line.

O’Brien, however, misreads the situation and advances up beyond the tackle to a position in behind Webb.

O’Brien shouts, “Tackle only” three times as he comes around in behind the ruck, apparently trying to guide Barnes into viewing it as such.

However, Barnes has identified the formation of a ruck and briefly says, “Out, out” to O’Brien, seemingly warning him to get out of the position he’s in.

Webb passes the ball a second later and Barnes immediately whistles for the penalty against Ireland, providing an instantaneous reasoning.

“Offside, clearly a ruck,” says Barnes, before pointing at Stander. “He made the ruck, he made the ruck. Six is over the ball, there’s contact over the ball.”

Jamie Heaslip shouts something inaudible after Ireland have backed away, but Barnes says, “No, I’m not talking, I’ve made the decision, alright.”

However, after Wales kick to touch for the lineout, Barnes moves to O’Brien to clarify.

“He [Stander] got back up, did he?” asks O’Brien.

“He [Stander] was just on the ball having a contest, so when they made contact, there’s your ruck,” explains Barnes.

Case closed, and from the resulting lineout, the Welsh go 50 metres upfield into the Ireland 22, forcing Joe Schmidt’s men to make a handful of thunderous tackles, before Jonathan Davies knocks on to end a lengthy passage of intense pressure.

While Barnes could perhaps have provided O’Brien with a greater degree of warning in this instance, that’s not exactly his job. Some teams would expect the referee to call “ruck” when a ruck has been formed or “tackle only” when no ruck has been formed, though this is not really the referee’s duty.

If Ireland are going to use what remains a relatively risky defensive tactic, they simply must nail their execution and reading of each situation.

From the restart of the second half – taken by Simon Zebo in Johnny Sexton’s absence – Ireland opted out of a possible ruck, as we can see below.

However, there seemed to be uncertainty about advancing up after O’Brien’s penalty concession in the first half, and we can see that only scrum-half Murray makes a move up around the tackle, although it’s rather half-hearted.

There was another brief Irish attempt before the end of the game, although it involved O’Brien misreading the play again – or at least pretending not to realise that a ruck had been formed.

We see the incident below.

O’Brien advances up the right side of the tackle for Ireland, again shouting, “Tackle only!” twice and pointing to Jamie Heaslip on the ground.

Based on the clip above, it looks like O’Brien is correct, but Barnes tells him, “Get out, get out” and O’Brien halts his movement upfield.

Again, the referee is correct here, as we see when rewinding play a few more seconds to note Heaslip’s initial involvement.

Sam Warburton has gathered in a loose ball after Leigh Halfpenny drops a Johnny Sexton bomb, and Heaslip jackals over the ball.

As soon as the Welsh players arrive and make contact Heaslip – all of them on their feet – there is clearly a ruck formed.

Again, Heaslip probably felt he was unlucky not to win a turnover penalty here, but the point is that O’Brien himself actually identifies the ruck, shouting, “Release, release, release” as Heaslip competes for the steal.

Moriarty and Halfpenny manage to remove Heaslip, Barnes warning, “Off your feet now, Jamie” and the Ireland number eight releases the ball.

But just because Heaslip is now on the ground does not mean that the ruck – or more importantly, the offside line – doesn’t exist anymore.

By advancing up around the ruck anyway, O’Brien has either completely misread the situation, or is aware of the scenario and is attempting to convince Barnes that there is no ruck.

When Wales clear to touch, Barnes again approaches O’Brien and gives him a warning.

“Mate, I don’t want to penalise you,” says Barnes.

“He [Heaslip] is on the ground, isn’t he?” says O’Brien.

“No, if Jamie is on his feet originally, as soon as there’s contact over here, don’t run that risk,” replies Barnes.

It will be interesting to note if Ireland use this tactic against England in Dublin on Saturday, but they will certainly need to be sharper in their execution if it is to be a success.

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Ulster Bank League

Division 1A

Old Belvedere 15-15 Lansdowne

Anglesea Road

Lansdowne’s John O’Donnell scored two tries. Source: Tommy Dickson/INPHO

OLD BELVEDERE GAVE themselves a fighting chance in their battle against relegation from Ulster Bank League Division 1A as they shared the spoils with 14-man Lansdowne at Anglesea Road this afternoon.

First-half tries from John O’Donnell (two) and Ireland U20 international Paul Boyle had leaders Lansdowne in pole position for another win, but with the visitors’ blindside flanker Joe McSwiney sent off in the second period, ‘Belvo dug deep to claim a 15-all draw and two potentially vital points.

Looking to bounce back from defeats to Clontarf and Cork Constitution, Lansdowne had the better of the opening exchanges although young out-half Charlie McMickan missed a long-range penalty before injury forced him off. Fergal Cleary replaced him.

Mike Ruddock’s men kicked their next two penalties to the corner and a 12th minute maul was finished over the line by O’Donnell on the right. His centre partner Mark Roche missed the conversion but Lansdowne doubled their lead in the second quarter, spreading the ball wide to the left for O’Donnell to finish comfortably.

Their third unconverted try followed on the half-hour mark when they opted for a scrum rather than a shot at the posts. Promising number eight Boyle picked off the base and burst over for the score, leaving ‘Belvo with a 15-point deficit to overcome.

Limerick man Willie Staunton was introduced at the break and he opened Belvedere’s account with an expertly struck penalty after 44 minutes. The home side suffered a setback when prop Adam Howard was sin-binned, however McSwiney’s dismissal in the 56th minute for a high tackle on ‘Belvo’s Paul Pritchard proved even more significant.

Staunton uncharacteristically missed the resulting penalty kick, but ‘Belvo’s persistence was soon rewarded with a 68th-minute try, which saw them counter at pace from a turnover and returning Ireland Club international Sean Coughlan charged away to score in the right corner.

The conversion was missed but the hosts were now benefiting from that numerical advantage. Loosehead Howard made a powerful break and although he was halted inside the Lansdowne 22, fullback Daniel Riordan picked up the ball in space and clinically cut through for a try on the right.

Staunton was faced with a tricky conversion but the former Garryowen, Young Munster and Terenure half-back superbly split the posts to bring Belvedere level. The sides could not be separated in the closing stages, meaning bottom team Belvedere had closed the gap on Garryowen to three points at the foot of the table, while Lansdowne’s lead at the summit is down to two points with two rounds remaining.

OLD BELVEDERE: Daniel Riordan; Eddie Weaver, John Kennedy (capt), Ben Woods, Sean Coughlan; Paul O’Keefe, Aaron Sheehan; Adam Howard, Ed Rossiter, Daryl Ryan, Jack Kelly, Connor Owende, Karl Miller, Paul Pritchard, Jonathan Slattery.

Replacements: Cathal O’Flynn, Eoin O’Neill, Matt Ritani, Willie Staunton, Ben Butler.

LANSDOWNE: Eamonn Mills; Daniel McEvoy, John O’Donnell, Mark Roche, Marc O’Keefe; Charlie McMickan, Matthew D’Arcy; Jacob Walshe, Tyrone Moran, Ian Prendiville (capt), Josh O’Rourke, Stephen Gardiner, Joe McSwiney, Charlie Butterworth, Paul Boyle.

Replacements: Tadgh McElroy, Ntinga Mpiko, Barry Fitzgerald, Alan Bennie, Fergal Cleary.

________________

UCD 3-3 Terenure College

Belfield Bowl

UCD’s Billy Dardis. Source: Ryan Byrne/INPHO

Relegation-threatened Terenure College climbed out of the bottom two with a hard-earned three-all draw with UCD at the Belfield Bowl.

Terenure have edged ahead of Garryowen in the battle of the basement sides, but they almost pipped the mid-table students in the final seconds with full-back Jake Swaine narrowly missing a difficult penalty from out on the right wing.

Both sides showed plenty of attacking endeavour early on but a fast-paced first half ended scoreless, with UCD fullback Billy Dardis and Terenure winger Sam Coghlan Murray both looking dangerous. UCD out-half Matthew Gilsenan watched a long-range penalty attempt go to the left and wide.

The UCD pack nearly muscled their way through for a try early in the second period, the combined ball-carrying efforts of Greg Jones, Josh Murphy, Andrew Porter and Peadar Timmins almost leading to a score.

However, Terenure, whose confidence was boosted by their recent win over Old Belvedere, showed huge determination in defence. They were driven on by captain and Ireland Club international Kyle McCoy, with centre Stephen O’Neill and number eight Eoin Joyce also standing out.

‘Nure’s cover defence thwarted Hugo Keenan as he almost got away following a neat link-up with Will Connors. Into the final quarter, Gilsenan had another penalty miss before Swaine, the visitors’ goal-kicking full-back, found the target for the opening score.

Discipline was key in the closing stages and UCD looked to have the momentum after Terenure’s hard-working blindside Robert Duke was sin-binned and Gilsenan mopped up with the levelling three points. However, it was ‘Nure who had two final shots at the posts as Swaine was just short from halfway and then pushed a last-minute effort wide in a very tense finish.

UCD: Billy Dardis; Hugo Keenan, Jamie Glynn (capt), Stephen Murphy, Tom Fletcher; Matthew Gilsenan, Nick Peters; Liam Hyland, Gordon Frayne, Andrew Porter, Josh Murphy, Emmet MacMahon, Greg Jones, Will Connors, Peadar Timmins.

Replacements: Michael Moynihan, Robert Byrne, Brian Cawley, Harry McNulty, Gavin Mullin.

TERENURE COLLEGE: Jake Swaine; Marc Hiney, Stephen O’Neill, Robbie Carroll, Sam Coghlan Murray; Mark O’Neill, Kevin O’Neill; Gary Hamilton, Robbie Smyth, Conor McCormack, Mike Murphy, Kyle McCoy (capt), Robert Duke, Harrison Brewer, Eoin Joyce.

Replacements: Tiarnan Creagh, Cian Madden, John Dever, Isaac Boss, Robbie Murphy.

__________________

Cork Constitution 26-20 Garryowen

Temple Hill

Cork Con’s Max Abbott. Source: Ryan Byrne/INPHO

Hooker Max Abbott’s late try clinched a dogged 26-20 victory for Cork Constitution against Munster rivals Garryowen at Temple Hill today.

Garryowen, who are battling to avoid relegation, outscored the Leesiders by three tries to two but fell agonisingly short in the end. Indiscipline cost them with Con out-half Tomas Quinlan clinically dispatching four penalties through the posts as part of a 16-point personal haul.

There were scoring chances at both ends before Munster centre Sam Arnold broke the defensive line and touched down in the seventh minute for Garryowen. Captain Neil Cronin, who played for the Ireland Club International team last week, added the conversion.

Hunting for their fourth victory in a row, Constitution hammered away at a resilient Garryowen defence before Quinlan opened the hosts’ account with a 25th-minute penalty. There was no stopping Conor Kindregan eight minutes later as he collected a try, adding to his second-row partner Brian Hayes’ recent hat-trick of scores.

However, Garryowen took a 12-10 lead into the break thanks to fullback Liam Coombes’ fifth try of the campaign, with a lot of credit going to flanker Mikey Wilson, whose clever step opened up the space. Quinlan missed a subsequent penalty before the half-time whistle was blown.

The Constitution forwards forced the issue on the resumption as their scrum began to cause damage. Quinlan landed two penalties from three attempts, splitting the posts after 45 and 48 minutes and then hitting the woodwork with a subsequent attempt.

The Light Blues kept plugging away and were rewarded with their third try in the 67th minute. A well-worked back row move, including a strong run from number eight Bailey Faloon, saw scrum half Cronin released for an unconverted try, and a 17-16 lead.

The Corkmen responded with Quinlan’s fourth penalty success in the 76th minute but Cronin cancelled that out with three points of his own. However, the play-off chasing hosts, who had now nudged their way into second place, denied Garryowen with that decisive try from Abbott under the posts.

CORK CONSTITUTION: Shane Daly; Liam O’Connell, Ned Hodson, Niall Kenneally (capt), Rob Jermyn; Tomas Quinlan, Jason Higgins; Liam O’Connor, Max Abbott, Ger Sweeney, Conor Kindregan, Brian Hayes, Graeme Lawler, James Murphy, Luke Cahill.

Replacements: Rory Burke, Gavin Duffy, Cian Barry, John Poland, JJ O’Neill.

GARRYOWEN: Liam Coombes; Steve McMahon, Sam Arnold, Peadar Collins, Hugh O’Brien-Cunningham; Andrew O’Byrne, Neil Cronin (capt); Niall Horan, Eamon Costello, JP Phelan, Sean O’Connor, Barra O’Byrne, Dara Shanahan, Mikey Wilson, Bailey Faloon.

Replacements: Anson Thai­, Mike O’Donnell, Tim Ferguson, Johnny Keane, Jamie Heuston.

_______________________

Clontarf 11-13 Young Munster

Castle Avenue

Young Munster star Alan Tynan. Source: Tommy Dickson/INPHO

Teenage out-half Alan Tynan was the toast of Young Munster after his last-ditch drop goal steered the Cookies past top-four rivals Clontarf.

Munsters came away from sunny Castle Avenue with a 13-11 win and four precious points as they ended their two-match losing streak in Division 1A, climbing above ‘Tarf into third place in the process.

This was a tight contest throughout, with Munster’s Cian Bohane and Robin Copeland making their presence felt as the visitors grabbed the game’s first try through left winger Craig O’Hanlon, which Tynan converted.

However, O’Hanlon’s opposite number Rob McGrath hit back with an unconverted effort, adding to David Joyce’s earlier penalty, as the north Dubliners, who had won their last four matches, led 8-7 at the turnaround.

Tynan and Joyce exchanged penalties before the former stepped up as his side’s match-winner right at the death. The Tipperary youngster’s coolly struck drop goal gives Munsters a timely boost ahead of their 8 April date with Cork Constitution. Only two points separate the sides in the standings as they chase a much-coveted home semi-final.

It was a costly defeat for Clontarf, who have fallen from second to fourth, but they are only three points behind Con with two rounds remaining. The defending champions, who welcomed back Conor O’Brien from a long injury lay-off, are away to St. Mary’s College in two weeks’ time before hosting UCD on the final day (15 April).

Clontarf scorers:
Try: Rob McGrath
Pens: David Joyce x2
Young Munster scorers:
Try: Craig O’Hanlon
Con: Alan Tynan
Pen: Alan Tynan
Drop: Alan Tynan;

CLONTARF: Jack Power; Rob Keogh, Michael Browne, Matt D’Arcy, Rob McGrath; David Joyce, Sam Cronin; Vakhtang Abdaladze, Jason Harris-Wright, Royce Burke Flynn, Ben Reilly (capt), James Doyle, Tony Ryan, Karl Moran, Michael Noone.

Replacements: Jonathan Larbey, Adrian D’Arcy, Ivan Soroka, Mark Sutton, Conor O’Brien.

YOUNG MUNSTER: Shane Airey; James O’Connor, Jack Harrington, Cian Bohane, Craig O’Hanlon; Alan Tynan, Rob Guerin; Gavin Ryan, Ger Slattery (capt), Colm Skeehan, Tom Goggin, Alan Kennedy, Elie Mundu, Dan Walsh, Robin Copeland.

Replacements: Mark O’Mara, Alan Ross, David Begley, David O’Mahony, Jack Lyons.

__________________

Dublin University 24-37 St Mary’s College

College Park

Terry Kennedy crossed the whitewash. Source: Camerasport/Dave Howarth/INPHO

St. Mary’s College outscored Dublin University by five tries to four in a brilliant advertisement for Ulster Bank League rugby at College Park.

These two attack-minded sides went at it hammer and tongs, with Mary’s capitalising on a blistering start in sunny conditions as they gained some revenge for September’s frustrating 31-19 home defeat to the Students.

Mary’s jet-heeled full-back Terry Kennedy ran in a superb solo try to open the scoring and flanker Gus Jones, a former England U20 international, finished off a fine team move for a second unconverted try.

The Trinity defence gave away again as number eight Kevin Sheahan broke through by the posts, with Leinster’s Cathal Marsh adding the conversion for a 17-0 lead after just 24 minutes.

The hosts, who had won their last two matches, found a chink in Mary’s armour when second row Cathal O’Flaherty was sin-binned and pressure in the scrum yielded a penalty try, which winger Bryan Mollen converted. A 38th-minute penalty from Marsh closed out the first half’s scoring at 20-7.

The Trinity backs, including Ireland U20 starlet Colm Hogan, were particularly potent in the second half, with place-kicker Mollen bagging a brace of tries and USA international Tim Maupin also touching down. Their bonus-point score arrived in the 79th minute.

But Jamie Cornett’s Mary’s side were out of reach by then, winger Ian O’Neill securing their bonus point with a try created by Kennedy and Conor Hogan, while Marsh added a second penalty before industrious centre Darren Moroney deservedly put his name to try number five.

Mary’s and Trinity are now sitting sixth and seventh in the Division 1A table, six and five points clear respectively of the relegation play-off position. This win was hugely important for Mary’s as they still have to play title contenders Clontarf (8 April) and Cork Con (15 April).

Dublin University scorers:
Tries: Penalty try, Bryan Mollen x2, Tim Maupin
Cons: Bryan Mollen x2
St. Mary’s College scorers:
Tries: Terry Kennedy, Gus Jones, Kevin Sheahan, Ian O’Neill, Darren Moroney
Cons: Cathal Marsh x2, Ian O’Neill
Pens: Cathal Marsh x2

DUBLIN UNIVERSITY: Colm Hogan; Tim Maupin, Michael Courtney, Kyle Dixon, Bryan Mollen; James Fennelly, Brian Slater (capt); Eric O’Sullivan, Paddy Finlay, Charlie Connolly, Jack Burke, Raef Tyrrell, Pierce Dargan, Richard Dunne, Tom Ryan.

Replacements: Jack Boland, Tom Collis, Cian O’Dwyer, Roghan Osborne, Michael Silvester.

ST. MARY’S COLLEGE: Terry Kennedy; Ian O’Neill, Darren Moroney, Marcus O’Driscoll, Conor Hogan; Cathal Marsh, Paddy O’Driscoll; Tom O’Reilly, Richard Halpin, Brian McGovern (capt), Ciaran Ruddock, Cathal O’Flaherty, Nick McCarthy, Gus Jones, Kevin Sheahan.

Replacements: Hugo Kean, Cathal Ryan, Jack Dilger, Hugh Kelleher, Mark Fogarty.

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ULSTER DIRECTOR OF rugby Les Kiss has welcomed news that Marcell Coetzee will sit out four more months after knee surgery.

The powerful South African back row was injured during Ulster’s Pro12 win over Zebre, and, given he only returned in February after 10 months out with a cruciate ligament injury, the worst was feared.

However, exploratory surgery on his left knee in Belfast yesterday confirmed and repaired “a significant medial meniscal (cartilage) tear”.

No further surgery will be needed for the 25-year-old and the recovery timeframe is expected to be four months. Ulster expect the Springbok to be fully fit for the start of Jono Gibbes’ reign next season.

“It really is fantastic news,” says Kiss, “it’s great to hear that he will be back sooner than we initially expected.

“He has had a tremendous impact since he joined the club, not only on the pitch, but also on the training paddock with his huge work ethic and infectious positive attitude. It’s a great boost for the club, the supporters and most importantly Marcell himself, that we will see him back in an Ulster jersey at the start of next season.”

Source: Presseye/Matt Mackey/INPHO

“I have spoken to Marcell and he’s really pleased with the prognosis. He is extremely grateful for the care he received from the Ulster Rugby medical team and the staff at the Ulster Independent Clinic, plus for all the messages of support he has received from the Ulster fans. I know from the way he faced the challenge of his previous rehab that he will be back even better than before.”