(Pic- Nenagh Ormond RFC U18.5 Squad- Winners of the Pan Munster Dev. Cup 2024)
U18.5: The Nenagh Ormond U18.5 team finished their season with an exciting final on the Thomond Park main pitch last Saturday. Meeting Garryowen in the final after two recent semi finals losses, in both the North Munster league and the North Munster cup was always going to be eagerly awaited. Garryowen got a last play try to win the first semi in a high scoring game in Lisatunny. In the second semi final a disappointing first half, in difficult conditions, left us 27-0 down at half time. Despite that, a good comeback and a final score of 19-27, showed that there would not be much between the teams come the final whistle here.
Missing a number of players with long term injuries and captain Ivan Struzia who was out of the country, added to the challenge, but in fairness to the players they produced their best defensive performance of the season when it mattered. As expected the game was tight in the first 20 minutes with defences on top but it was clear that some of the mistakes from the previous games were not going to reoccur and we steadily gained a foothold in the match. A long range penalty from Darragh Gleeson dropped under the crossbar, as we looked to break the deadlock but it was Garryowen who got the first score of the game. A kick through from the Garryowen 10 went into touch in our 22 and having won the line out the referee penalised a Nenagh player for obstruction and Garryowen kicked to the corner. Winning the lineout at the front they set up a good maul and their hooker broke from the back and scored wide out on the left hand side, the conversion leaving Garryowen 7-0 ahead .
After some good play by Nenagh we made our way to the Garryowen 22 and we were awarded a penalty for a high tackle. The decision was made to tap and go and after 10 phases Nikki Nie , who carried the ball well all day, scored on the right hand side and Darragh added the extras to leave the score at 7 all, after 29 minutes played. As half time approached a loose pass by Garryowen was picked up by Conor McGrath and it looked like he might go all the way for a try but a brilliant cover tackle stopped him 7 metres from the line. Garryowen infringed at the ruck and we again tapped but Fionn O’Meara was held up over the line and a goal line drop out was awarded. From the kick there was an amazing sequence of play by the Nenagh boys with 18 phases of attack that led to Jack Meagher scoring the try of the season wide on the right and Darrgah Gleeson nailed the difficult conversion, giving us a 14-7 halftime lead. This was a superb team try with backs and forwards probing the resolute Garryowen defence with the finish by Jack just rewards for some great play.
5 minutes into the second half Garryowen were awarded a penalty for not rolling about 30 metres out in front of the posts but to the relief of the travelling supporters the kick into the wind drifted left and wide. After getting to the Garryowen 5 metre line after a good chase from a long kick by Valters Jantens, we conceded a scrum penalty to let Garryowen off the hook. After a poor exit kick we conceded a penalty that Garryowen kicked to the corner and after some strong carries by them, their replacement scrum half dummied from a ruck and scooted over beside the posts, the conversion leaving the game tied at 14 all. After the kick off the Garryowen 10 made a break from his own half and at the tackle area we were penalised for a deliberate knock on and were down to 14 men when the referee issued a yellow card to the offending Nenagh player. Garryowen kicked to the corner and won their line out but some terrific defence saw them held up over the goal line. From the drop out a chip to the corner was well covered by Darragh and we survived again. From the drop out the pressure continued as Garryowen went wide to the winger but a terrific tackle by Valters saw them knock on and a great carry by Tommy Wilkinson, who was defensively excellent all day, saw us clear our lines as the time on the yellow card ticked down.
Garryowen were throwing the kitchen sink at us at this stage but the boys held firm and a loose pass in midfield was hacked on by Josh Powell, also outstanding all day, and we pressurised them in their 22. The clearance kick missed touch and was fielded by Darragh Gleeson on the halfway line and he ran hard and we were awarded a penalty at the breakdown. Darragh took a quick tap and raced towards the Garryowen 22 and we had advantage for Garryowen not having retreated 10. Josh launched a free play cross kick that Valters gathered and he fed Conor McGrath in support. After two carries by Sam Lancaster and Dan Kenneally we swept the ball to midfield where Nathan Mannion, on as a sub for the hard working Ryan Gratton, set up a ruck in the 22 in front of the posts. A quick delivery by Cathan Gaffney, who passed the ball well in his best performance of the season,got the ball to Josh Powell on the left hand side and with a magnificent dummy Josh glided through a hole to score 15 metres from the left hand touchline for a superb try. Darragh once more nailed the difficult conversion to leave us 21-14 ahead with 15 minutes to go. The next few minutes saw some frantic defending as Garryowen piled on the pressure but some magnificent defence by Kedagh Broderick , Fionn O Meara and Sam Lancaster and the reinforcements Jack Casey, Donnacha O’Meara and Luke Grey kept them out and Josh had a fantastic relieving box kick to finally get us out of our 22. Wave after wave of Garryowen attacks saw their attack switch back and their dangerous no 10 chipped over the top and looked like he was going to break away for a score but an injured Garryowen player and medic were on the field and the referee was forced to blow his whistle and award them a scrum. It was probably the bit of luck the team needed and that was missing in the previous semi final games and the supporters were able to breath a sign of relief as the clock moved on to the final few minutes. From a loose cross kick by their 10 we were accidently offside and a couple of scrum resets saw the Nenagh faithful biting their nails. Garryowen went wide to the wing but they were tackled into touch at our ten metre line. We won the line out and set up a maul. After a few pick and go’s Jack Casey kicked the ball off the field and the final whistle blew. A fantastic performance by the boys, the best tackling performance of the season. The scrum was excellent throughout with Jamie Horan and Nikki Nie on top. Dan Kenneally played a stormer and was excellent at throwing into the lineouts. Fionn, Ryan and Kedagh dominated the lineouts and our maul was a good weapon all day. Jack Meagher and Sam Lancaster were outstanding in the backrow against a very strong Garryowen side. In the backs Josh and Darragh gave us two good kicking options and the midfield defence of Ryan and Tommy was rock solid. The wingers Conor and Valters were a threat and had some big moments in the game. All the panel played their part, especially the guys who didn’t get on the pitch due to the close nature of the endgame and the very tight finish that had everyone on the edge of their seats.
Team; Jamie Horan, Dan Kenneally, Nikki Nie, Ryan Gratton, Fionn O’Meara, Jack Meagher, Sam Lancaster, Kedagh Broderick, Cathan Gaffney, Josh Powell, Tommy Wilkinson, Ryan Inhoff, Valters Jantens, Conor McGrath, Darragh Gleeson, Donnacha O’Meara, Luke Grey, Luke Comerford, Luke Shelly, Nathan Mannion, Jack Casey, Killian Healy, Brehon O’Donnell, Dylan Ryan Gleeson, Oisin Maloney, Injured/unavailable Ivan Struzia, Dyaln Crowe, Conor Gleeson.
U16: Our U18.5 team weren’t alone in terms of Thomond Park success this past weekend as our U16 team also did the business with an excellent 35- 22 win over Shannon RFC in the North Munster Cup Final on Sunday. This was a much tougher outing against a Shannon side who had struggled against Nenagh just two weeks ago in Lisatunny but clearly were anxious to avenge that reversal. In the end though Nenagh had just enough quality to get over the line and add yet another title to what has been a very impressive season for the Nenagh underage section so far this year. Well done to all players and coaches involved.
U14: Nenagh Ormond under 14s played Newport/Ballina/Killaloe in the quarter final of the North Munster Cup on Sunday last. Nenagh had played the same opposition early in the year but didn’t know what to expect this time around. Nenagh started very slowly and allowed the opposition to keep possession for large parts of the first quarter. However a great turnover from Shane Gleeson forced a knock on from the opposition. From the scrum the ball was moved to the very impressive Donagh Carmody at outhalf who passed to Scott Powell on the switch and made great yards. Then with offloads from Hugo Massy and Ben Madden the ball was in the hands of Anluan White who powered his way over the line. Nenagh kept the pressure on and moved the ball from wing to wing. Somehow Anluan White had ran from wing to wing evading tackles to get his second try. Nenagh kept the foot on the pedal and scored another try before half time, the ball was punched up in midfield by James Dwyer, was then moved by Aidan Ryan who came off his wing, to pass to Daniel Boland who showed great awareness to keep the ball alive. At this ruck the ball was moved back into midfield where Luke Slattery fed Scott Powell and he dotted down under the posts. Kaden Fogarty kicked the conversion to leave the half time score at 17-0.
In the second half Nenagh kept the momentum going with a try straight from the kick off. The ball was gathered by Daniel Boland who made good yards in a tight space, then moved to the other wing and off took Aidan Ryan. He out paced the defence to score under the posts. That try seemed to knock the confidence out of the opposition and Nenagh went on to score further tries from Analun White, Ben Madden who showed great awareness to power over the line from five metres, and a brilliant individual effort from James Dwyer. The opposition did score a try when Nenagh’s defense seemed to switch off momentarily. Nenagh’s defense in general was excellent with good line speed and some impressive dominant tackles. Nenagh play either Young Munster or Ennis, who play next Sunday, in the semi final. Training continues Wednesday evening
U13: The U 13s were in cup action on Sunday with the short trip to Clarisford for a quarter final clash against Ballina/Killaloe and an away trip to a very strong Garryowen the reward in the semi final. The lads were missing a few from injury after an epic league semi final victory against a fired up st Senan’s last Wednesday. With the stand full to the brim, and thanks to 2 tries from Aidan O Gorman we saw out the win on a 13-5 scoreline.
Back to Killaloe though and the lads gripped the game from the start with the squad strength shining through as we eased to a 32-10 win over a game home side. The league cup final vs Shannon has been set for this Sunday at 12.30 in Coonagh. This venue was selected at the start of the year so into the lion's den we go. A large support from Nenagh would be a great help so if you're free Sunday at 12.30 we would love the support. Special mention
to Tommy Morgan in the forwards who caught the eye with a great display in the tight and loose on Sunday, while Ben Platt was the best back on view, gliding over the ground and causing havoc for the defence.
U11: Our Under 11s entered three teams into the Naas RFC Joe Moran Festival of Rugby on Saturday, 13th April. All the boys played what was collectively their best rugby of the season and really enjoyed the day out, topping it all off by winning the Joe Moran Trophy. This award recognises the team "that best embodies the core values of respect, teamwork, positive attitude and good behaviour". The coaching staff are exceptionally proud of this group of young lads. Our final outing for the season will be our annual trip to Seapoint on April 28th.Well done all.
U9: Nenagh Ormond Under 9s had their last home blitz of the season on Sunday.
Nenagh were able to field 4 teams against 2 Shannon & 2 Newport teams.
The rain held off & it was a great morning for the kids as they got to play on the main pitch in front of friends & family.
It's been a hard season with a lot of trainings & blitzes called off but that hasn't stopped these kids progressing in all aspects of the game & it showed on Sunday. Well done everyone on a great season.
Split the Bucket: Congratulations to our most recent winner Tom Fogarty. Our Split the Bucket Draw continues to hand out a minimum of €500 in prize money every week. This is our main fundraiser and supports the work of the club at all age levels. Go to nenaghormondrfc.com/products to enter and be in with a chance to win our next weekly jackpot.
Coldplay Fundraiser: Tickets to Coldplay in Croke Park this Summer are possibly the most sought after in the country right now. If you haven’t got one there’s still time to win two Premium tickets by entering our draw. For as little as €10 you could be in with the chance to win. Go to nenaghormondrfc.com/products where there are a range of entry options. Don’t miss out.
