Clondalkin’s 3rd string earned a well-deserved home win against Parkmore on Saturday 12th October in the Leinster Metro League Division 7.
After conceding an early penalty, Clondalkin rallied and outhalf Colin Lyons converted his own try to leave the hosts up 7 – 3. The dominant Clondalkin pack began to excerpt pressure and were further rewarded with two Mark O’Rourke tries, both unconverted before the break. Clondalkin effectively sealed the tie with a Matthew Brockelbank try in the 56th minute to leave Clondalkin leading 22 points to 3. The yellow mist descended for Mark O’Rourke who having been so effective in a attack for the first half, was sent to the sin bin for persistent foul play and Clondalkin were forced to play for 10 minutes with 14 men. This gave Parkmore the impetus to attempt to claw their way back into the game and they were rewarded by two unconverted tries in the 68th and 72nd minutes. However, it was a case of too-little too-late for Parkmore as Clondalkin closed the match out by a scoreline of 22 – 13.
Overall a strong outing from Clondalkin who were definitely the team in charge for most of the game. An effective defensive outing coupled with a dominant scrum and lineout laid the foundations for an excellent team performance. Colin Lyons marshalled his backline well throughout the game and Conor McCrea made some useful ball carries which kept Clondalkin on the front foot.
