In what we hope to bring you as a regular feature please read below the match report form our 1st XV's draw last weekend and the 2nd XV report will follow. With thanks to Alex Cassidy.
Suttonians Rally Back to Share the Chocolate's in Station Road Thriller
Suttonians Rally Back to Share the Chocolate's in Station Road Thriller
By Alex Cassidy
A late Suttonians surge saw the hosts recover from a 14-point second-half deficit to earn a hard-fought 24-24 draw against Wicklow at Station Road.
Top-of-the-table Suttonians had their work cut out for them on a chilly Saturday afternoon at Station Road. Suttonians started brightly, showing intent with the ball in hand as James Buckeridge carried with conviction, while Sean Cribbin displayed silky hands in the wider channels. Despite the early promise, the hosts were unable to capitalise on the pressure and turn it into points.
The opening exchanges soon swung in Wicklow’s favour as Suttonians were forced to defend their own line, but a mis-executed cross-field kick let them off the hook. Not long after, Wicklow found themselves crossing the whitewash as their powerful loose head prop broke through the Sutton midfield and dished the ball to inside support to open the scoring. The conversion was nudged over, and Sutton were trailing by seven points early on.
Wicklow applied more pressure on the home side, with Suttonians conceding a penalty in front of the posts, which was duly converted to extend the lead to 0-10. Wicklow had another attempt at the sticks not long after, but the attempt was pushed wide.
While Wicklow dominated much of the first half, Suttonians found a foothold approaching the interval. Matthew Linehan produced a crucial steal before Hugh Duignan delivered a superb box kick that put the Wicklow backfield under immense pressure. The Wicklow fullback spilt the ball, and from the resulting chaos, Louis Gallagher showed great awareness to throw an out-the-back pass to Darragh Kelly. With the Wicklow winger caught in no man’s land, he stuck his hand out to stop a three-man overlap out wide, resulting in a penalty try for Suttonians and a subsequent yellow card for the offender.
Sutton squandered a chance to be in front at halftime with a move down the left wing leaving the hosts trailing by three at the interval.
Half-time: Suttonians 7-10 Wicklow
Both sides emerged with intent in the second half, but it was Wicklow who initially applied the pressure, pinning Suttonians in their own half. Jack Walters, earning his 50th cap for the club, helped the home side weather the storm with a big defensive effort. The Suttonians pack worked hard throughout and reaped the reward when they won a turnover, which provided the platform for Barnes to put an old school spiral kick down the Wicklow end.
Jack Gallagher tied the scores at 10-10 with a penalty kick. Wicklow found themselves back to 14 men yet again when Andy Ussher was taken out in the air from the kick-off. Despite being reduced to 14 men, it was the visitors who capitalised during the sin bin period. Sustained pressure ended with a beautifully timed inside ball sending the Wicklow winger under the sticks. With the conversion successful, Wicklow found themselves leading 10-17.
The visitors’ enterprising play earned their outside winger a brace of tries in the space of ten minutes as he glided through the Sutton defence to earn his side a 14-point lead heading into the business end of the game.
Suttonians refused to throw in the white towel. Strong carries from the forwards laid the platform for the backs to fire. Blaise Barnes delivered a delicate cross-field kick, which Louis Gallagher gathered with diligence to score in the corner. Jack Gallagher nailed a touchline conversion to bring the hosts back to trail by 7 points.
With a race against the clock and Wicklow close on a notable upset, Sutton found one last surge. Quick thinking by Darragh Kelly from a Sutton penalty allowed him to bulldoz his way through the Wicklow defence before being dragged down just short. After several phases, Barnes received the ball from Duignan to send Buckeridge over in the corner. With the game on the line, Jack Gallagher showed the composure of a seasoned pro to slot the touchline conversion, ensuring the tight contest finished all square at Station Road.
Full-time: Suttonians 24 – 24 Wicklow
Suttonians Scorers:
Try Penalty - Louis Gallagher - James Buckeridge
Conversions Jack Gallagher x 3
Penalty - Jack Gallagher
Suttonians Man of The Match: Andy Ussher
