For much of an error-strewn game this supposed top billing seemed a case of who most deserved to lose. Ultimately, Shannon rose above the dross and were worthy winners, with Terenure grateful for a barely justified bonus point.
There are obvious reasons for Shannon's relative malaise, especially for a turgid opening 35 minutes. Blooding a couple of AIB League newcomers in the front row, their scrum locked impressively enough while they made significant inroads into a malfunctioning Terenure lineout that perhaps suffered for James Blaney's 25th-minute withdrawal but had already coughed up a couple of throws by then anyhow, including one five metres from the Shannon line.
Shannon also recycled their ruck ball far more proficiently than Terenure, who were frequently forced to turn over the ball in contact by the big, committed home back row and the ever-honest, hard-working John Langford. Yet with all this possession, Shannon struggled to open their account for 37 minutes. Terenure could even have been two penalties to the good given that David Quinlan illegally kicked the ball back from the Terenure side of a ruck under the Shannon posts (in mitigation of referee Dave McHugh, Shannon's changed strip hardly reduced the colour clash) and Shannon weren't helped by a couple of Andrew Thompson misses, untypically hitting the posts with a straight 25 metre effort.
Far more culpable was Shannon's general use of the ball, their back line lacking direction, depth and penetration as they shovelled it along without ever checking the drift. In this, coach Conor McDermott pointed out that "Andrew Thompson is a new, developing out-half". There is also the youthful promise of the midfield and John Lacey's re-invention as a strike fullback.
Yet, through sheer volume of possession and the numbers game, they still hurt Terenure out wide through the pacey elusiveness of Jason Hayes and the barnstorming, unstoppable John O'Neill, who did another of his Lomu impersonations. Aside from the winger's breakthrough tries either side of the interval (a foot in touch denied him a hat-trick), he also took up a steady stream of ball with predictably profitable returns and applied a crunching try-saving tackle on Dermot Quinn. The latter is in good company, for even Martin Johnson has experienced the O'Neill shudder.
Mick Galwey, largely on cruise control, galloped in for another try, which was the product of Mossie Lawlor's hit and steal as Mark O'Kelly tried to break out from inside his own 22. David Coleman then crossed with an 84th minute effort to earn a bonus point for Terenure. Kevin Putt, whose on-field option-taking and organisational skills were missed, was as perplexed as he was disappointed by Terenure's apparent apathy, a barometer being their sluggish reactions to Shannon's quick taps and line-outs.
These are still formative days, and Conor McDermott was not inclined to swing from the rafters. "All we've done is win two home matches, and one of the targets we've set this season is to win all our home games." On a day which yielded nothing but home wins in the top two divisions, it is not such a wild target.
Nor was Putt suicidal just yet. "The bonus point means we've eight points from three games, which is the equivalent of two wins, so we're not slitting our wrists just yet." However, with leaders Cork Con to come to Lakelands Park next Saturday, Terenure will hope this was a serious wake-up call.
Scoring Sequence: 10 mins: Cullen pen, 0-3; 37: Thompson pen, 3-3; 40: O'Neill try, Thompson con, 10-3; 47: Cullen pen, 10-6; 53: O'Neill try, 15-6; 66: O'Kelly try, 15-11; 75: Galwey try, Thompson con, 22-11; 84: Coleman try, 22-16.
Shannon: J Lacey; J O'Neill, N McNamara, J Davis, Jason Hayes; A Thompson, C O'Loughlin; M Hayes, C Tucker, G McNamara, M Galwey, J Langford, B Buckley, D Quinlan, A Quinlan. Replacements: C McMahon for Jason Hayes (50 mins), D Costello for M Hayes (69 mins), M Lawlor for Davis (69 mins).
Terenure: R Governey; D Coleman, M O'Kelly, M Smyth, J Coffey; S Cullen, D Hegarty; S Barretto, J Blaney, J Campbell, R Sherriff, D Quinn, L Hammond, D Blaney, P O'Malley. Replacements: C Egan for J Blaney (25 mins), A Ryan for D Blaney (64 mins), C Long for Quinn (67 mins), D Murphy for O'Kelly (77 mins).
Referee: D McHugh (IRFU).
