Killarney meet Killorglin for promotion
Diarmuid Sheehan
WELL after last weekend’s Munster Junior Rigby action it is almost over for Kerry rugby clubs in their respective leagues. It has been a tough year for the clubs who have battled hard all season to try and secure the best league positions possible.
The 2016/2017 season is done for most but there is still the small matter of the inaugural Division Three Promotion play-off competition to settle which has more than a little local interest.
The J3 league can often be a procession for the victors but this year that all changed. With Killarney, Killorglin and new side Mitchelstown battling away all season against plenty other sides with genuine promotion credentials, this season was one of the most exciting in years at the leagues bottom league.
Right from the off it was Killorglin that led the way, breezing past all that stood before them with an ease that suggested the champions elect couldn’t be stopped however just when the Kerry side didn’t expect it a revitalised Killarney side stopped them in their tracks which handed the title to the Cork team.
That result meant that Killorglin had to make do with a place in the play-off competition with seven other potential title suitors.
Another win saw Killorglin get the chance to entertain Fethard & District last weekend with both sides looking for a place in the all or nothing showdown with either Dungarvan or the afore mentioned Killarney.
This one was to be a tight affair, tighter than many may have thought but on the day the spoils would deservedly go the way of the Kerry men.
Tries from Cathal Doyle and Liam Foley set the Kingdom side on their way to victory here with the boot of Luke O’Shea again proving to be the main difference. Four penalties and one conversion was enough to see off a valiant Fethard side that have really improved of late. 24-17.
With Killorglin through all that was left to see was would Killarney be able to set up one of the most eagerly anticipated derby games in recent Kerry rugby history.
Dungarvan had genuine expectations of recording a win last Sunday in the Kingdom after recording a host of really good wins of late. For Killarney, the second half of the season was a total transformation as the first half had seen the Kerry boy’s slump to some really poor defeats.
Martin Houlihan was almost the hero of the day for Dungarvan – going in for a hat trick of tries. David Hickey added to the Killarney fears with two successful penalties and one conversion.
Killarney were well able to mix it up on the day and got tries from Alan Mulligan, Brian Lynch and Paul O’Sullivan scored tries for Killarney with Paudie Sheahan kicking two penalties and a brace of conversions. In fact it was Sheahan’s penalty in the dying seconds of this one that saw Killarney scrape through by just two points, 25-23.
So there you have it. After a year of trouble and strife the two top Kerry sides in the J3 will go toe to toe this weekend for a place in the middle tier of Munster Junior Rugby.
Form over the season would suggest that this one is Killorglin’s to lose however remember the only league defeat they suffered this year was against next weekend’s opponents.
For Killarney, they really have nothing to lose. A brilliant second half of the season has seen them get this far so on that score it will be interesting to see can they finish off the job.