Newbridge RFC march into Towns Cup quarter-finals with Portlaoise win

Newbridge travelled to Tougher to face Portlaoise in the last 16 of the Towns Cup, with both sides coming into the game in strong form.

Portlaoise currently sit second in Leinster League Division 2B, while Newbridge are third in Division 2A, setting the stage for a highly competitive contest.

Newbridge started brightly and looked to assert themselves early. They controlled much of the possession in the opening exchanges but turned down a number of kickable penalties in pursuit of an early try.

Portlaoise, however, defended resolutely and struck first when outhalf Bryan Croke, who was orchestrating a lively young Portlaoise side, helped set up captain Ryan McEvoy to cross the line. Croke added the extras to give the home side a 7–0 lead.

McEvoy struck again midway through the half, finishing his second try to double Portlaoise’s advantage to 14–0.
Newbridge responded well and got themselves back into the contest through a well-worked move finished by Riain Murphy.

Just before the break, a high tackle on Shane Treacy resulted in a yellow card for Portlaoise’s Joe Stevens, and John O’Brien added the resulting penalty to reduce the deficit to four points.
At halftime, the score stood at 14–10 to Portlaoise.

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Newbridge began the second half strongly, looking to move the ball wide at every opportunity. A superb pass released Riain Murphy, who raced in for his second try of the afternoon, giving Newbridge the lead for the first time at 17–14.

Portlaoise responded through the reliable boot of Bryan Croke, who levelled the game with a long-range penalty before adding another to nudge the home side back in front in what had become a classic cup encounter.

The Kildare men answered in style. A powerful break up the middle from Stephen Cooke brought play to the Portlaoise 22. Slick handling from John O’Brien and Michael Ugochukwu created the opportunity for James Parkinson, who evaded several tackles to score close to the posts and restore the lead at 21–17.

O’Brien continued to punish Portlaoise's indiscipline, adding another penalty to stretch the lead to seven points as Newbridge began to take control. He then sealed the victory with a superb long-range effort, opening a ten-point gap at 30–20.

The final act of the game came from 18-year-old Joshua O’Keefe, making his senior debut, who produced an excellent turnover to secure possession and confirm Newbridge’s place in the quarter-finals.

It was an excellent game of rugby, with both teams committed to playing positive, attacking rugby throughout.
Newbridge now march on to the quarter-finals, where they will face Longford in Rosetown on March 29.

PORTLAOISE: 1 Paddy Coss, 2 Ryan McEvoy, 3 Aran Coiley, 4 Darragh Davies, 5 Michael Rigney, 6 Mark Sherlock, 7 Glen Connolly, 8 Cormac Rigney, 9 Jake Byrne, 10 Bryan Croke, 11 Iain Corrigan, 12 Kevin Griffin, 13 Joe McCormack, 14 Marc Bracken, 15 Niall Keenan, 16 Eoin Keenan, 17 Joe Stevens, 18 Ciaran O'Brien-McCormack, 19 Cian Coffey, 20 Mark Kelly, 21 Jamie Holohan, 22 Jack Duffin.

NEWBRIDGE: 1 David Morgan, 2 William Jennings, 3 Brendan Commane, 4 Mark Bennett, 5 Cameron English, 6 Shane Treacy, 7 Denis Clarke, 8 Max McLoughlin, 9 Kevin Commane, 10 John O’Brien, 11 Zack Meehan, 12 James Parkinson, 13 Riain Murphy, 14 Gavin Houlihan, 15 Darragh Whyte, 16 Michael Ugochukwu, 17 Jack Moore, 18 Steven McElligott, 19 Chris Leech, 20 Joshua O’Keeffe, 21 Robert Waters, 22 Stephen Cooke.