These are contrasting times for the two-time former winners of the AIL: trying, tryless times for Garryowen after a second consecutive defeat, relative bountiful times for the Cork Con tigers as they go to the top of an embryonic first division table.
Not that Constitution were particularly ruthless in going for the kill against opponents who had already been severely wounded before the kick-off. Beaten off the park by Shannon the previous week, further depleted during the week and up until kick-off, Garryowen were obliged to blood three under-21s from the start and a couple more by the finish.
They should probably have been easy prey for a comparatively full-strength Con but then again this was a Munster derby, albeit played out in front of no more than 1,500 spectators, and this was Garryowen. No team has made a virtue out of perceived weakness more than Garryowen and nobody, but nobody, has won more matches they seemingly had no right to win.
Reacting to last week's slow start, they rolled up their sleeves and showed scant respect for their visitors. They suffered another blow through an opportunist breakaway try by Australian flanker Craig Taylor after 92 seconds following good work by Brian Walsh, Conor Mahony and Ronan O'Gara, by which time the ball had changed hands four times without pausing for breath. Yet for the best part of 70 minutes there was little between the sides.
"I was impressed by the younger boys in the team," enthused Garryowen's new coach Andy Earl. "We were always going to struggle this year but it's about developing what we've got within the club for the future, really. Again we created opportunities but until we learn to finish we're going to be struggling." With Shane Leahy leading the way, Garryowen resourcefully earned a steady enough supply of line-out ball and took the game through more phases than Con could manage, playing the better rugby for much of the first-half and tackling better too. With Con declining to press home a stronger scrum even against 14 men, O'Gara missed three kickable penalties in the third quarter before Jeremy Staunton edged Garryowen in front again after 68 minutes.
As wake-up calls go, this came via loudhailers and was possibly the best thing that could have happened to Con. They immediately upped the tempo, as they had at the end of the first-half. It helped that an apparent knock-on by Brian O'Meara was missed by David McHugh at the base of a ruck, as even the Con coach Brian Hickey admitted afterwards, but finally taking the ball through half a dozen phases, O'Gara was able to loop around Conor Mahony for Adam Sherrard to put Taylor over for his second try.
A Con penalty on half way for dissent over the try enabled them to establish field position for O'Gara, coming good when it mattered despite an understandably uninspired day, to seal the outcome with a drop goal.
Seemingly petrified by the thought of fellow Corkman McHugh in charge, for all Con's pre-match attempts to disregard Garryowen's depleted resources, players are only human. Coming after their thumping of Belfast Harlequins, the early try may have lulled them into a further false sense of security.
Nevertheless, they celebrated with surprising gusto afterwards. "Regardless of the loss of key players to Garryowen games with them are always going to be tough," said Hickey. Mindful of losing a game they should have won here in the last two minutes two years ago, Con "used that in a positive way. We showed a huge willingness to play a wide game, and I would pay a huge credit to their (Dooradoyle) pitch.
Scoring sequence: 2 mins: Taylor try 0-5; 12 mins: Keane pen 3-5; 17 mins: Staunton pen 6-5; 37 mins: O'Gara pen 6-8; 40 mins: O'Gara pen 611; 55 mins: Staunton pen 9-11; 68 mins: Staunton pen 12-11; 70 mins: Taylor try, O'Gara con 1218; 72 mins: O'Gara drop goal 12-21.
GARRYOWEN: D Crotty; K Hartigan, K Keane (capt), J Brooks, K Hartigan; J Staunton, A Guckian; J Giltenane, P Humphreys, R Laffan, S Leahy, O Kelly, P Neville, J O'Sullivan, A Bermingham. Replacements: N Hartigan for Giltenane (52 mins), D Heaton for Mackay (52 mins), G Walsh for Humphreys (71 mins), C harigan for Bermingham (71 mins).
CORK CONSTITUTION: B Walsh; D Dillon, J Kelly, C Mahony, A Sherrard; R O'Gara, B O'Meara; I Murray, F Sheahan, J O'Driscoll, D O'Callaghan, M O'Driscoll, C Taylor, U O'Callaghan (capt), J Murray. Replacements: J Fogarty for J Murray (76 mins).
Referee: D McHugh (IRFU).
