1st XV lose despite a good display
Basic mistakes prove costly for battling 1st XV
Armoy 1st XV played hosts to Cavan 1st XV on Saturday and were determined not to succumb to another heavy defeat which was the case when the sides met last season.
Right from the kick off Armoy began to boss their visitors particularly at scrum time where the meaty Armoy pack totally dominated their equally meaty opponents. For the opening 10 minutes the Lime Park men kept the pressure on but were unable to make the vital breakthrough. The first score of the match came after 15 minutes and it was completely against the run of play. With Cavan mounting their first meaningful attack of the match they forced their way into the Armoy 22. The ball was passed out to the Cavan out half about 10 meters from the line. He showed good strength and a side stepped 2 tackles to crash over for a converted try. Armoy then reasserted themselves from the kick off but were again unable to make an impression on the score board. Cavan were able to make inroads into Armoy’s 22 with a lineout that was functioning very well. Cavan were awarded a penalty for a ruck infringement which saw Armoy being reduced to 14 men virtue of a harsh yellow card being shown by the young referee. From the penalty the Cavan out half slotted the ball between the sticks to give his side a 10 point lead.
Despite being a player short for ten minutes Armoy held firm and still managed to put Cavan on the back foot for a spell. Just before half time Cavan again crossed the whitewash with a well worked backs move that resulted with an unconverted try in the corner.
Half Time Armoy 0 – 15 Cavan
The second half followed a similar pattern than of the first with both teams using their areas of dominance to gain ground.
The next score came virtue of some indecision from the young referee. From a scrappy piece of play the referee seemed poised to blow for a clear knock on by Cavan as he put the whistle to his mouth then waved to play on. This caused the Armoy defence to hesitate and this hesitation was enough for Cavan to gain another unconverted try.
This sense of injustice spurred the men from Lime Park into action and in the final 15 minutes they were camped inside the Cavan 22 and for long periods on the Cavan Try line. The visitors held firm for the most part but eventually Armoy got the reward that their play deserved.
From a series of rucks inside the Cavan 5 meter line the ball was picked up by prop Neil Porterfield who darted through a gap in the Cavan defence and over the line for a unconverted try.
Final Score Armoy 5 – 20 Cavan
After the match Armoy captain Gareth Christie thanked all 15 players for a superb effort and a much improved performance. Special praise went to Sammy McMullan and David Linton for their thunderous tackling. However he reiterated that we can only keep improving by getting everybody to attend training on Wednesday evenings.
Next week the 1st XV travel to Belfast to play P.S.N.I in the Gordon west Cup while the 2nd XV play hosts to our old friends Donegal 2nd’s.
