City of Armagh RFC 23 Shannon RFC 20

Saturday 16th October 2021
Report by Evan Morton

A minutes silence was observed at the Palace Grounds prior to kick off as a mark of respect to City of Armagh club stalwart, Sinclair Scott and also to mark the 5th anniversary of Anthony Foley’s passing.

Conditions were overcast but dry, as Armagh kicked off towards the Palace end and the home side got off on the front foot, putting the visitors under early pressure. A lineout on the Shannon 22 set up a number of attacking phases as the forwards and backs combined well to take play to the Shannon line. Following some patient build up play, it was hooker, Jack Treanor who crossed for the game’s opening try with 7 minutes on the clock. Kyle Faloon converted to give Armagh an early 7-0 lead.

The Shannon restart went out on the full and Armagh won a free kick from the scrum to set up another attack. A Shannon penalty saw them kick to the opposition 22 but a knock on saw Armagh clear. Armagh outhalf, Romain Morrow put in a crossfield kick which was gathered by Ryan O’Neill with Kyle Faloon and John Glasgow almost breaking through the Shannon defence. Armagh continued to dominate the first quarter and Shannon were forced to defend and with penalty advantage Morrow put in a grubber kick but Shannon touched down. Faloon then took the penalty kick to edge the home side further ahead, 10-0 with twenty minutes played. An injury to Armagh captain, Nigel Simpson then saw veteran James Morton come off the bench. The visitor’s outhalf, John O’Sullivan then kicked two penalties in two minutes and suddenly they were right back in the game at 10-6. It was Shannon who finished the half strongest with O’Sullivan kicking well for territory and Shannon’s fast line-speed making it difficult for Armagh to cross the gain line. Armagh were penalised again in front of their posts as the half came to a close but the kick went wide and a penalty for a high tackle let Armagh clear their line. The interval arrived with Armagh holding a narrow lead, 10-6.

Armagh received the kickoff from the restart and an early penalty saw them move the ball wide from the resulting lineout. A knock on turned over possession to Shannon but another penalty on 47 minutes was converted by Kyle Faloon from 40 metres and Armagh now led 13-6.
From the restart, Armagh’s attempted box kick was charged down and the home side had a lineout 10 metres from their line. A crooked throw gave the initiative to Shannon and from their lineout, they mauled the ball to the Armagh line. The maul was dragged down and the referee awarded a penalty try to Shannon. Philip Fletcher was singled out by the referee and the prop received a yellow card for his indiscretion.
The match was now finely balanced at 13 point each with 50 minutes played.
Both teams then looked for a break through and it was Armagh who had a glorious opportunity for a try.
A Shannon backline move broke down on the halfway line and Armagh winger, Matthew Hooks hacked the ball 50 metres towards the Shannon line. A superb tackle prevented the winger from scoring, but when Armagh recycled the ball they were pinged for accidental offside and a score went a begging. It was the home side that then had a good attacking spell with Shannon pinned back in their own half. An Armagh player was tackled in the air and Morrow kicked the ball down the line for a lineout on the Shannon 22. On this occassion the Shannon backs strayed offside and Faloon had a simple kick on 65 minutes to edge Armagh ahead 16-13.

Three minutes later, Shannon won a scrum penalty just inside the Armagh half and the home side looked in trouble when prop Paul Mullen received a yellow card. Shannon elected to kick to touch and this backfired when they lost their lineout. As the game moved into the final 5 minutes, both sides were penalised for crossing as the tension mounted. Armagh box kicked out of their half and winger Darren Gavin collected the ball on his 40 metre line. Alan Flanery then broke clear and with 4 missed tackles, Ireland under 20 number eight, Daniel Okeke scored under the posts. O’Sullivan converted and Shannon led 16-20 with 3 minutes remaining plus injury time. In the closing minutes Armagh forced two turnovers but frustratingly knocked on twice. A penalty for another Shannon infringement gave them a lifeline but three points would be insufficient. Morrow kicked to the corner and from 5 metres out, a superb catch and drive saw the pack over the line with Jonny Morton touching down. The referee was unsighted to award a try but penalised Shannon for collapsing the maul. Deep in injury time, Armagh secured their lineout and once again mauled over the tryline, only this time, referee Dermot Blake awarded a penalty try to Armagh. The whistle then blew for fulltime and City of Armagh had heroically secured the victory with the final scoreline, 23-20.

Three wins from their first three Energia AIL matches sees City of Armagh sitting in third place in the league table. Head Coach, Chris Parker was delighted with the result and commented, “our players today deserved great credit for showing determination and resilience after conceding that late try to Shannon to go down the pitch and claim the victory. The most pleasing aspect was all 21 players made huge contributions to help achieve the result. I thought our back row today was outstanding and James Hanna was man of the match but it could have been one of many. “

City of Armagh now have a week’s rest before their next AIL fixture, a trip to St Marys College in Dublin in two week’s time.