GOREY RUGBY
Gorey 26, Ashbourne 22: Gorey pulled off one of the shocks of round two of the seconds Towns Cup when they travelled to Ashbourne and, after what can only be described as a thriller, came away with a 26-22 victory.
A cold, crisp day and a light breeze on a perfect pitch were the backdrop to this match.
Gorey started well and put a number of good phases together, and on ten minutes they were awarded a penalty for Cian Hadden to split the posts and open the scoring.
The huge Ashbourne pack settled and began to put a lot of pressure on the visitors, and for almost the remainder of the half they dominated their significantly younger opponents.
The Gorey back row of Wafer, Hadden and Mason were working overtime to stem the flow.
But Gorey could have extended their lead when, with a clear overlap, and the line beckoning, Gorey got line fever.
A quick turnover by Ashbourne saw Connolly pick up and race from his own ’22. He off-loaded to Norton who went in under the posts, and Toolan converted to make it 7-3.
Ashbourne were playing with confidence, and on the 35-minute mark the pack took control with a number of big carries for the ageless Jeff Mahon to cross for a try and stretch their lead. Toolan converted again to extend their advantage to 14-3.
As Gorey have so often done this season, with seconds left on the clock they reduced that lead to six when Paul O’Connor ran in for a try. Hadden was just wide with the conversion, so 14-8 was the score at half-time.
The second-half saw Ashbourne immediately stretch that lead to 17-8 with a Toolan penalty.
The next 20 minutes proved nip and tuck as both teams tried to earn the advantage.
On the 60th minute Gorey worked their way into the Ashbourne ‘22 and, a number of phases later, quick hands saw Robbie Brooks cross for his first try. Hadden was just short with the conversion.
At 17-13, it was game on. On the 68th minute Gorey pressed and, when Michael Wafer stole a loose ball on the ground, quick hands saw Ciarán Allen charge over for a try to go into the lead (18-17).
In a complete reversal of the firsthalf, Gorey were now beginning to edge the exchanges, but within two minutes, Ashbourne restored their lead to 22-18 when David Aaron finished a good move in the corner.
There was still a sting in the Gorey tail, and from the re-start they went through the phases. A long pass by Garret Bater found Robbie Brooks and from inside his own half he took off, weaving his way past some wouldbe tacklers.
He made his way to the Ashbourne ‘22 but still had work to do. He stepped his winger and crossed for what could arguably be described as the try of the season, to put Gorey in front again.
A minute later Cian Hadden added a penalty as Gorey closed out a famous victory.
This game had everything and was played in the true spirit of the Towns Cup.
Gorey had some fine individual performances, from David O’Neill, Garret Bater and Robbie Brooks in the backs, while the forwards of Michael Wafer, Ben Mason and man of the match Eoin Walsh were outstanding.
Gorey advance to the quarter-final where they will meet Kilkenny in Clonattin on March 25.
Gorey: W. Rothwell, E. Walsh, C. Allen, M. Whelan, L. Kinsella, M. Wafer, S. Hadden, B. Mason, G. Bater, C. Hadden, R. Harrington, C. Power, D. O’Neill, T. Cleary, J. Willoughby, K. Rothwell, R. Deering, R. Jones, P. O’Connor, R. Brooks.