Pressure on Connacht to overcome Scottish visitors

Date Published: 29-Nov-2012

CONNACHT’S RaboDirect Pro12 campaign usually dips off around this point in the season and their poor display in Newport last Friday in a 14-3 loss to the Dragons underlines a familiar feeling to this current campaign.

A crucial and hectic period of action lies ahead starting with the visit of Edinburgh to the Sportsground this Saturday at 5pm. The Scots are just three points ahead of Connacht in the table and if there is to be any momentum carried into the back-to-back Heineken Cup meetings with Biarritz, a win and a much improved display on last week is essential.

Making progress in the Pro 12 is a huge challenge, perhaps a bigger one than the goal of finishing second in their Heineken Cup pool. and it’s very hard to see how one-off displays against the big sides will bring in enough points at the end of the season. Nights like Saturday are the real test of this side.

Eric Elwood has plenty of injury concerns in the camp. George Naoupu and John Muldoon are key men to be without and last weekend he was also missing Tongan try scoring hero Fetu Vainikolo who helped his country beat Scotland. He’ll be back on Saturday, but Irish international Mike McCarthy might not as he’s carrying a back injury. Plenty to ponder.

Eagles Fail To Shine

A cold but dry Sportsground proved to be a perfect setting for the A inter-provincial which saw Leinster defeat the Connacht Eagles 31-9 on Friday evening, building on a seven point half time lead and pulling clear in the final quarter.

Leinster were driven by some key up and coming stars, including Irish under 20 scrum half Luke McGrath who was superb throughout, along with Tom Denton in the second row and Jack Conan in the back row.

They led 7-0 after 20 minutes and were camped out on the home line and looked to be lining up a second score but out half Cathal Marsh dropped possession when the ball went to the backline and Brian Murphy hacked downfield, tackled Adam Byrne who had scrambled back, and forced the penalty which Matthew Jarvis slotted.

Five minutes later, Connacht had narrowed the gap to one with a long range effort from their full back, but two Marsh penalties before the break underlined a much improved finish to the half by the visitors and put them 13-6 in front at the break.

Early in the second-half, Marsh stretched the lead to nine before the Westerners raised hope with some bright play from Eoghan Grace, Aaron Conneely and Paul O’Donoghoe leading to Jarvis’ third penalty to bring them back within seve, but that was as close as it got for Connacht as they conceded two tries in the final quarter.

In the pack, the bright sparks for the home side were JP Cooney, Kevin O’Byrne and Jonathan Gardiner while, in the backline, Murphy battled well in the second half alongside Conor Finn with Jarvis industrious at full back, but overall this was a sold trimming for the development side.

For more, read this week’s Gal

way City Tribune.