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GOREY U18s BOOK THEIR PLACE IN SOUTH EAST FINAL

Gorey’s U18s had a very short turnaround from their win over Naas in the Leinster Premier League the previous Saturday before facing Wexford in the South East League Semi-final on Wednesday evening under lights in Clonattin. The Gorey side went into the game missing a number of players due to injuries sustained in the previous game.

Gorey asserted themselves from the off. Within minutes of the start Seán Wafer made a good break to feed Cian Kenny who carried well before releasing the ball to the in-form Mark Boyle to race over for the opening score of the game and give the home side a 5 – 0 lead.

Wexford tried hard to fight back with their inside centre in particular proving to be a handful. But relentless tackling by Adam Byrne and Joe Butler meant that the visitors were unable to make any real ground.

It wasn’t long before Gorey were once again threatening the Wexford line and when the referee stuck out his arm to indicate that he was playing a penalty advantage to Gorey, Oisín Fortune saw his opportunity and danced by several defenders to score Gorey’s second try, which he converted himself to extend their lead to 12 – 0.

Both sides had substitutions forced upon them, as the recent heavy schedule of games began to take its toll. Gorey’s limited reserves saw some players in unfamiliar positions, but each rose to the occasion and none were found wanting.

With 25 minutes gone, Gorey scrum-half, Donough McGivern, gave a great skip-pass over the head of the onrushing Wexford defenders and into the hands of Mark Boyle, who never looked like being caught as he sprinted for the Wexford line. Oisín Fortune caught the post with his conversion, but it bounced over fortuitously to leave the score at 19 – 0.

Gorey fumbled the resulting kick-off and the referee awarded a penalty, which Wexford cleverly tapped quickly and caught the home side off guard to open their account for the evening and close the gap a little to 19 – 7.

The Wexford side kicked the ball out of play shortly afterwards, happy it seemed for the half-time break and the opportunity to regroup.

The second half began with Gorey starting as if they needed points more than the visitors. Within minutes they found themselves with a lineout inside the Wexford ’22, which was gathered quickly by Jack Ryan and the ball swiftly recycled to Mark Boyle who crossed the whitewash for his third try of the evening.

Shortly afterwards, it was Gorey scrum-half Donough McGivern, who was yet again instrumental delivering a perfect pass to Cian Kenny, who had a lot of work to do before finally breaking over the line for a well-worked try. The score now Gorey 31 – Wexford 07.

A little bit of indiscipline left both sides a man down, as the referee issued the teams a yellow card apiece and it was Wexford who took advantage when their agile centre crossed the line for a try.

With just minutes remaining on the clock, both sides were to add to their try tally, as Gorey’s Mark Boyle scored a fourth try for the second time in a week, and Wexford getting a deserved try to bring the final score to; Gorey 36 Wexford 21.

Gorey face Enniscorthy in the final on a date to be confirmed.

This was another great team performance from Gorey, particularly in light of the number of injuries that they carried into the game. They defended brilliantly and showed a determination that bodes ominously for any future opposition.

There were outstanding performances right across the match day squad, but the Man of the Match award goes to Cian Kenny for his clever work at the lineout and his resolute defence.

GOREY

01. Rhys Slator

02. Cormac Walsh

03. Jack Ryan

04. Joe Butler

05. Cian Kenny

06. Carl Johnston

07. Gonzalo Sanchez

08. Mark Boyle (Capt.)

09. Donough McGivern

10. Cathal Stokes

11. Alex Rothwell