Both teams were gripped by what proved to be an ineffectual siege mentality in the second-half of this Division One tie at Stradbrook on Saturday. Before the process started, however, Buccaneers had plundered sufficient points to secure their latest, remarkable triumph.
So we savoured another chapter in what has become a compelling story of sporting endeavour. "They're incredibly proficient at what they do," said Blackrock coach Kevin West in a post-match comment that could be a perfect anthem for every ordinary team who have reached extraordinary heights.
Instead of facing a desperate struggle for survival at this stage of the campaign, Buccaneers find themselves second in the table to Garryowen on points difference. Indeed they are potential leaders, given their match in hand over both the Limerick club and Lansdowne immediately below them.
From his four years on the coaching staff at Stradbrook, Eddie O'Sullivan didn't dare contemplate such heady possibilities during the build-up to the match. "I had a bad feeling all during the week about this game," admitted the Buccaneers coach afterwards. "I knew Blackrock would be ready for us."
Those apprehensions seemed extremely well founded when the Westerners faced a strong, second-half wind with a lead of only four points. And they had turned to profound concern when Buccaneers' position had not improved, despite having subjected Blackrock to intense pressure for almost the entire third quarter.
Scrum followed scrum, close to the Blackrock line, as the visitors looked to their established, forward strength for a breakthrough. But it never came. Then, in the 60th minute, the siege was raised. And when Blackrock wing David Johnson blocked an attempted clearance by full-back David Beggy, a victory surge by the home side seemed inevitable.
"I wouldn't have given a plugged nickel for our chances at that stage," said O'Sullivan, using a highly appropriate metaphor for a team whose name dates back to 17th-century American pirates."
Somehow, however, Buccaneers managed to resist everything that Blackrock threw at them in a pulsating last 10 minutes.
Where the Westerners had relied on repeated forward drives in their attempts at breaching the Rock defence, the home side looked to fluid passing movements, back and forth across the opposing 25. But an apparently certain breakthrough was thwarted.
The overall quality of the Buccaneer's pack was emphasised once more by their two tries and, as usual, the tight five were quite outstanding. Meanwhile, the backs defended heroically, especially during the closing stages when centres Owen Cobbe and Eamonn Molloy were most effective.
Effectively, the difference in the scoreline stemmed from the failure of Blackrock out-half Alan McGowan to land two difficult first-half conversions into a right-to-left wind. This could be viewed as a fortunate break for Buccaneers, but one suspects that the Westerners are now capable of making their own luck.
Scoring sequence: 16 M Cahill try, S Allnutt conv (0-7); 20 M Steffert try, Allnutt conv (0-14); B Carey try (5-14); 35 P Jordan try (10-14).
BLACKROCK: B Carey; T Keating, M Roche, D Quinlan, D Johnson; A McGowan, N Assaf; T Stapleton, S Byrne, P Jordan, R Casey, H Kos, R Wheeler, L Cullen, R Rogers. Replacements: D Kavanagh for Stapleton, E Robinson for Carey.
BUCCANEERS: D Beggy; M Devine, O Cobbe, M Molloy, A Connolly; S Allnutt, S McIvor; J Screene, J McVeigh, M Cahill, B Rigney, C Rigney, D Rigney, M Steffert, E Brennan.
Referee: R McDowell (MRA)
