Quinlan still hungry for success

AIB SENIOR CUP FINAL COUNTDOWN:THE SCOPE for new conquests in club rugby is a narrow remit for Shannon so it's easy to understand the attraction of Saturday's AIB Senior Cup final at Dubarry Park.

It is the first time that Shannon have made the final of the tournament, a fact they will have viewed as something of an anomaly given their pre-eminence in other national and provincial club competitions.

The Limerick club have won the AIB League division one title a record eight times and already this season have claimed silverware in the form of the Munster Senior Cup. Number eight and captain David Quinlan has enjoyed plenty of success with Shannon, either side of a short sabbatical at Buccaneers, but neither his nor his team-mates' appetite has been diluted by previous achievement.

"In every competition we enter we have the same attitude: if it's there we'll give it a go. We'll be giving it a lash in the final."

Despite the choice of words there is nothing haphazard about Shannon's commitment.

They targeted the AIB Cup as soon as they had beaten UCD in the league. Last weekend they squeezed past Galwegians in the semi-finals and are now opposed by Blackrock College in Athlone.

They used the disappointment of last season when they contended without winning anything as a motivational tool at the start of the present campaign.

Quinlan explained: "We kept a separate focus for the various competitions. We know that we let ourselves down last season and were determined to rectify that.

"We had a very tough start to the league with three of our first four games against Clontarf, Garryowen and UL Bohs.

"Fortunately we came out on the right side of those results and this gave us the impetus we needed to kick on."

The vexed issue of the suggestion of declining standards in league rugby is something with which Quinlan disagrees.

"There is definitely an improvement in standard. Sure the old regulars are at the top (of the division) but the teams that have come up, like Old Belvedere and Greystones, have done reasonably well and we've had so many tough games this season."

Quinlan has certainly led by example, contributing seven tries this season, including a couple in the four cup matches to date. It's interesting that en route to the decider Shannon never once played in Limerick, making reaching the final an even better achievement.

However, while it's been a real team effort a couple of individuals in Stephen Kelly and Andrew Thompson have been major contributors.

Quinlan enthused: "Stephen came to us last year having already been an accomplished Gaelic footballer. He worked very hard in the pre-season and has turned into a real rugby player (Kelly still plays football for Limerick).

"He has been a fantastic acquisition for us, benefiting as well from being on the end of a very good backline.

"He's lightning quick, has a good left peg and excellent football skills. He's a real livewire."

Kelly is the team's leading try scorer this season with nine but it is Thompson, ever present during Shannon's marvellous run of league titles, who has contributed more than any player in the current set-up. He is the team's leading points scorer with 147.

The excellent relationship that Shannon boast with their national team players can be gleaned from the fact that Tony Buckley, Jerry Flannery, Alan Quinlan, Marcus Horan and Anthony Foley have all worn the club colours this season.

It's likely they'll be with the Munster squad, most in a playing capacity, on Saturday for their Magners League clash with Leinster at the RDS, but they might sneak a quick look at the television during the afternoon. The club inspires that sort of affinity.