Late O’Beirn penalty seals the win for ‘Wegians

Date Published: 10-Feb-2009

A LAST-MINUTE penalty from Rob O’Beirn saw Galwegians snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in their AIB Division 1 Connacht derby at Dubarry Park on Saturday.

This match was re-arranged after the initial fixture was abandoned three weeks ago when storm-force winds blew the crossbar down early in that encounter.

And with the IRFU decreeing that the game be re-played on the same day as Ireland entertained France in the 6 Nations at Croke Park, there was a predictably sparse attendance in Athlone to see Connacht’s two leading clubs go head to head.

In truth, it was very poor fare on offer as neither side came anything close to producing their best. However, at least there was a tight and dramatic finish for the hardcore faithful who showed up.

Wegians played with the aid of a diagonal breeze in the firsthalf, and they used it to confine the Buccs to their own half for almost the entire opening 40 minutes. They…