Dundalk off the mark with impressive win
LEINSTER LEAGUE
DUNDALK’S poor home form cost them dearly in the Leinster League last season, but on the evidence of Saturday’s display against Wicklow, Mike Walls’ charges may just have turned a corner.
A five-try demolition of previously unbeaten Wicklow gave Dundalk their first victory of the season and they can now look forward with confidence to their next assignment, at home to the defending champions Ashbourne.
Winger Patrick Reilly crossed the try line twice in the second half as the hosts built on a two-point half-time lead to record an impressive 25-point margin of victory.
Also a feature of Dundalk’s play was the fine kicking of Darragh Conroy and he opened the scoring with an early penalty, before the hosts conceded an intercept try for the third game running. The conversion was successful, as Walls’ men found themselves trailing, 7-3, having played most of the rugby.
Far from collapsing, the Louth men quickly hit back as Conroy slotted over twice to earn Dundalk a 9-7 lead at the interval.
The Mill Road side showed their quality during the second period as Walls and Sam Weber impressed in the half-back line.
Two quickfire tries, with Conroy adding the extras, had Dundalk 23-7 in front, with no way back at that stage for Wicklow. It was Reilly who got the first of those touchdowns, before Tiernan Gonnelly crossed the whitewash.
Wicklow grabbed a lifeline with a second try, but following the missed conversion the match completely slipped from their grasp as James McConnon latched onto Walls’ kick in behind, making it 30-12 as Conroy had shot over the two extra points.
Another unconverted try brought Wicklow to within 13, but Dundalk put paid to any notion of a comeback with two further maximums. Reilly applied the finishing touch to a break by centre German Javier Herrera Luhrs, collecting and driving across the line.
Conroy struck the conversion between the posts before bringing his personal tally to 22 points, having got in on the try-scoring act himself.
This bonus-point victory moved Dundalk up a place in the table, to sixth, and with Ashbourne struggling in their opening games then their visit to Mill Road on October 13th shouldn’t hold too many fears.
DUNDALK: Robert Farrell, Seán Arrowsmith, John Smith; Niall Smullen, Enda Murphy; James McConnon, Laurence Steen, Tiernan Gonnelly; Mike Walls, Sam Weber; Jonathan Williams, German Javier Herrera Luhrs; Derek Williams, Patrick Reilly, Darragh Conroy. Reps: Conor Williams, Caoilin Traynor, Greg Whately, Robert Williams, Jack Connolly. Picture: Ken Finegan
Division1Aresults
Ashbourne 5 Enniscorthy 20 Bective Rangers 10 Gorey 24 Dundalk 42 Wicklow 17 Kilkenny 19 Boyne 21
Nextfixtures
Dundalk v Ashbourne Enniscorthy v Bective Rangers Gorey v Kilkenny Wicklow v Boyne
Division1Atable
P 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
Gorey Enniscorthy
Bective
Wicklow Ashbourne Dundalk Boyne Kilkenny Division2Btable
P Balbriggan 2 Arklow 2 Edenderry 2 Midland Warr 2 Birr 2 Garda 2 Athy 2 Portarlington 2 W 3 2 2 2 1 1 1 0 W 2 2 2 1 1 0 0 0 L 0 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 L 0 0 0 1 1 2 2 2 D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 F 65 74 63 73 66 58 43 50 A 41 43 49 76 65 61 84 73
F A 109 17 84 28 44 40 66 34 43 77 31 41 34 74 7 107 BP 0 2 2 1 2 2 0 2 BP 2 2 0 3 1 1 0 0 Pts 12 10 10 9 6 6 4 2 Pts 10 10 8 7 5 1 0 0