BOTH Lansdowne and Terenure, who meet in the final of the Leinster Senior Cup at Lansdowne Road tomorrow, will not alone have the incentive of capturing the trophy but additional factors to sharpen their resolve.
If Lansdowne win, it will be their 23rd cup success and that will put them at the top of the roll of honour. They currently share that distinction with Dublin University on 22 wins each. In addition it will be a very special occasion for Lansdowne's international scrum half Fergus Aherne. He leads the team in the absence through injury of Brian Glennon and this match will mark Aherne's farewell appearance as he retires after the game. So, too, will back row forward Jim Sharkey.
A third cup medal would be a very nice departing gift for Aherne whose play has proved so very influential in Lansdowne's passage to the final. For instance he scored 24 of the 32 points amassed in the defeat of Old Belvedere in the semi final last week. He certainly represents a major threat to Terenure's hopes of winning the trophy for what would be a fourth time.
Furthermore, Terenure are in pursuit of what would be a great treble for the club. A few weeks ago they earned promotion to the first division of the AIL for the first time. And having won the Leinster Senior League earlier in the season, a win tomorrow would crown the most successful season in the club's history.
There are tangible links between the Terenure team that first won the trophy in 1966 and the side that plays tomorrow. The 1966 team was captained by Ed die Coleman and his son David now plays on the right wing while centre Ronan Browne's father Paddy was also a medal winner 30 years ago.
While Lansdowne have won the three previous cup finals between the teams, the most recent in 1991 being Lansdowne's last success, Terenure go into the match fortified by their defeat of these rivals in the league decider.
In that match the Terenure forwards stood up very well to the demands imposed on them. The side revealed a sufficient level of opportunism to score the victory points and defended with tremendous effect. They will need those attributes again as Lansdowne are rated as slight favourites.
Lansdowne have travelled the harder road to the final of the Anuset sponsored knock out competition, having beaten the holders St Mary's, Wanderers and Old Belvedere. Terenure defeated Monkstown and Clontarf.
When Terenure won the league they were without international full back Ciaran Clarke and scrum half Niall Hogan, both of whom will be on duty tomorrow and will add skill and experience.
Hogan's battle with Aherne will be very important, but Aherne may get more of the ball from his forwards. The last time the clubs met in the final, Aherne scored all the points for Lansdowne in their 13-9 victory. Will be prove the inspirational figure again?
