Westport bow out to Corinthians

Westport bow out


Preliminary Round
Corinthians 14
Try: R Ferguson
Pen: B O’Sullivan (3)

Westport 11
Try: C Hastings
Pen: E Walsh
DG: R Cafferkey
(AFTER EXTRA-TIME)

Rob Murphy
Cloonacauneen

BACK in yonder days, Westport would have been quietly content this week, basking in the achievement of securing a well-deserved replay from a trip to the reigning Connacht league champions.
Alas, the days of matches like this being decided in a logical manner are gone. Now we have extra time first, and then a set of vague and bizarre criteria to separate sides if that doesn’t work.
Extra time was enough on Sunday, as a penalty kick from home out-half Barry O’Sullivan gave Corinthians a gutsy cup win and a place in the first round proper. Westport didn’t deserve to lose, but neither did Corinthians.
This was a gripping encounter in horrible weather conditions. Saturating showers and a fairly hefty breeze played a key part in proceedings. Both sides struggled with the elements but they played their part in the story-line.
Westport had first use of the wind, and made inroads early on thanks to some typically astute tactical play from player-coach Eddie Walsh at ten. He kicked in open play and turned the Corinthians back three at regular intervals.
Walsh kicked three points in that first quarter, Ryan Cafferkey struck a bolt of a drop goal from long range, and Westport led 6-0.
By the midway point of the half, Corinthians were getting an edge at scrum time, and their lineout was superb off the back of Alan Walsh’s throws and the dominant work of Seamus Murphy and Donnadha Phelan.
Westport initially repelled them in defence. Paddy Kennedy was fearless in leading the charge in that regard, while John Paul Walsh was also at his unyielding best. They are big-game players, and the cup always brings out the best in such stock.
The first home try, when it came, was a little out of the blue. Corinthians had been pushed back ten metres to the 22-metre line, having being within a metre of scoring, and Hugh Griffin grubber-kicked to regain territory. The bounce eluded Cafferkey at full back and out of nowhere, Ronnie Ferguson pounced for the score.
Corinthians didn’t convert, but Barry O’Sullivan kicked a penalty on the half hour after Pat Hoban was penalised and sin-binned for an off-the-ball scuffle as he attempted to take a quick free kick. It had seemed harmless at first but proved costly with the score now at 8-6.
Westport finished the first half and started the second on the front foot, but two separate surges on the Corinthians line yielded nothing.
The home side appeared to have weathered the storm (literally), and now seemed likely to push on. Out-half O’Sullivan was in slick form, and the likes of Barry McCann and John Dileen were to the fore up front. However, a combination of good Westport defence and unforced errors meant they failed to score.
Westport capitalised with a chance out of nowhere. Replacement wing Philip Keegan countered a loose Corinthians clearance kick and took play to half way. Paddy Kennedy took play into Corinthians territory on the next phase and set a perfect platform.
Pat Hoban at scrum half then spread play wide, and the impressive Aidan Kilroy linked with Callum Southgate on a swift move through the hands. The winger then released Conor Hastings on the overlap for a sprint to the line from 30 metres.  It was a memorable score and gave the visitors an 11-8 lead.
Alas, it came a little too early. Corinthians still had 12 minutes, and to their immense credit, they rallied and levelled through O’Sullivan, who kicked a superb long-range penalty.
O’Sullivan had another effort which scraped just wide deep in injury time, but made amends in the second half of a tense extra-time period. Westport couldn’t find the answer.

Westport
R Cafferkey; C Southgate, O Joyce, A Kilroy, J O’Malley; E Walsh, P Hoban; P Kennedy, A Cusack, P Conway; E Mullowney, P Corcoran; C Hastings, B Prendergast, JP Walsh.
Replacements used: M O’Brien, M Kennedy, R Martin, J Corcoran, P Keegan.

Corinthians
R Ferguson; K Dunne, S Cooke, C Begley, R Forbes; B O’Sullivan, H Griffin; C O’Shea, A Walsh, P McCreanor; D Phelan, S Murphy; Mark Byrne, J Dileen, B McCann.
Replacements used: D Barbour, D Broderick, K Williams, G O’Sullivan, E Kilroy.

Referee: S Phillips