Sunday 11th December:  Wanderers (away)

On a cool damp morning, Greystones brought a large squad of players to Merrion Road for their encounter with Wanderers.  The Green and the White teams each played two games of 25 minutes duration against two Wanderers teams. 

Green Team

Game 1 v Wanderers 2

Greystones took charge of the opening exchanges of this game and scored two tries in quick succession from Jack O’Caoimh who exploited defensive gaps on the blind side. A third try was scored by Callum McNulty following good recycling by the forwards and strong running by the backs. Wanderers replied with a fine try on the stroke of half time from their right winger.

The second half was a much looser affair. Wanderers had good field position for the majority of the half and turned over a lot of Greystones ball, however good defence kept them at bay. On limited incursions into the Wanderers half, tries were scored by David O’Brien and Sean O’Brien. In reply Wanderers left winger scored a good try after sustained pressure created an extra man.

Despite the score this was a tough physical encounter between two well matched teams.

Final Score: Greystones 5  Wanderers 2

Game 2 v Wanderers 1

Greystones dominated this game from the beginning displaying good interplay between backs and forwards taking on board lessons learned from the first game. First half tries were scored by Liam Lupton Smith, David O’Brien and Sean O’Brien (2) one of which was a superb individual effort from close to his own goal line.

Wanderers replied with a try early in the second half but Greystones rounded off an excellent performance with a further try by Liam Lupton Smith and a fine team try from Callum McNulty.

Final Score: Greystones 6  Wanderers 1 

Green Team: Evan Downey, Oscar Daly, Darren Magee, Fionn O’Connor, Liam Lupton Smith, Rory Wilson, Niall Dooley, Ben Webster, Jack O’Caoimh, Mike Hayes, David O’Brien, Sean O’Brien, Callum McNulty, Max Neville, Andrew Neale, Joe Phelan.

White Team

Game 1 v Wanderers 1

The game started at a good pace from the outset, with good interplay between forwards and backs resulting in tries for Mick O’Gara and Darragh Rochford.  Wanderers countered with a score of their own, only for Mick O’Gara to gather the ball on the half way line and run half the length of the pitch for an excellent score.  The hard work of the forwards in particular resulted in Greystones taking a well-deserved 3-1 lead to half time.

Wanderers started the second half strongly and narrowed the gap following sustained pressure by their forwards. The game entered a period where a lot of ball was turned over by both sides. Greystones were able to take advantage of this and score with powerful carries by props Harry Noonan and Conor Lacy.  However, Wanderers never gave up and in a ten minute period scored three unanswered tries to leave the scores tied at 5-5. With only a couple of minutes remaining Greystones managed to regroup and score a winning try through Mick O’Gara.  The large squad of players all contributed to this win.  The game demonstrated the need for better rucking and the importance of having good disciple and concentration.

Final Score: Greystones 6  Wanderers 5 

Game 2 v Wanderers 2

The second match turned out to be another close encounter.  Greystones took to the field with a view to improving ball retention and getting ball to the backs more quickly. Both sides were evenly matched from the outset, but Greystones were better at moving the ball from scrums and lineouts to their wingers.  Jeremy O’Donovan and Conor Doyle were constant threats and made excellent runs to set up second phase play which the forwards recycled to allow Mick O’Gara to score two tries. Following a period of pressure, the Wanderers pack managed to breach the Greystones defence and trail by just one try. 

Immediately after the restart Greystones were to camp in the Wanderers half and finally got some breathing space when the excellent Harry Noonan carried strongly and crashed over for the final score of the game.  The boys demonstrated improved focus, commitment and team work. 

Final Score: Greystones 3  Wanderers 1

White Team: Harry Noonan, Jonathon Landers, Greg Doyle, Conor Lacy, Richard Slevin, Liam Marshall, David Furey, Patrick Regan, Tony Jackson, Conor McAleer, Conor Barry, Darragh Rochford, Mick O’Gara, Harry Begley, Jeremy O’Donovan, Conor Doyle, Adam Kelly. 

Well done to players from both clubs who displayed skill and commitment throughout.