Old rivals since the age bands were revamped three seasons ago, Gorey and Enniscorthy met again in the Leinster Premier Under19 semi-final on Saturday last, this time on neutral turf at Tullow R.F.C.

With each team packed with experience and Leinster Under-17 medals for the past two seasons in many back
pockets, this always looked like being a close encounter.

In a tight cup match, the team that gives away the most penalties will usually lose. With both teams struggling at times to placate the referee, it was Enniscorthy who shipped the lion's share and paid the price.

Gorey won the toss and elected to take the light breeze. Almost straight away they had an opportunity to score with a five-metre line-out from a penalty. But a knock-on during an attempted peel gave the initiative back to Enniscorthy.

On the heavy sod it was a forwards' type of game and the battle for supremacy was intense, each scrum taking one against the head in the first quarter. Thirteen minutes in, Enniscorthy opened the scoring with a penalty kick by Brendan Kearney, only for a Conor Hatton penalty to equalise shortly afterwards. Each kicker then missed a further penalty attempt and the score remained 3-3.

The rucking was very intense from both sides in classic cup match fashion. Gorey probably enjoyed more of the ball, and elected to kick for territory with wings Stephen Scallan and Andrew Walsh pursuing excellently to maintain ground.

Gorey now had a foothold in the Enniscorthy half and pressed hard for a score. A Stephen Duke grubber ahead almost put Stephen Scallan over in the right corner, but Jim White, Ennisorthy's Irish Under-19 left wing, just managed to touch down.

Finally, on the stroke of half-time, Gorey pressure yielded another kickable penalty and Conor Hatton duly obliged. But Enniscorthy know their championship minutes. They upped their intensity and gained a foothold in the Gorey '22, forcing their way over for a converted try in the half's last act to leave the score 10-6 in their favour.

It came from a slick line-out move, resulting in Naoise Dunbar crashing over after good work by Davy Murphy, Jamie Barron, Jack Murphy, Conor Mcdonald and Tom Ryan, with Brendan Kearney adding the conversion.
The second-half continued with equal intensity with almost nothing between the teams. Gorey's pack probably edged the battle, forcing the concession of infringements at the breakdown. Gaining a foothold in the Enniscorthy '22, they opted not to kick for points and went in pursuit of a try.

Two penalties were tapped and run before the excellent Stephen Gardiner barged his way over for what was to be the game's final score. The last 25 minutes were scoreless but intense. Penalties defined territory and kept the game swinging from end to end.
With 15 minutes to go, Enniscorthy suffered a yellow card for persistent infringing. But Gorey then conceded two penalties in a row to retreat back to their '22. A subsequent drop goal attempt for Enniscorthy went narrowly wide.

Gorey's pack was now tiring and they lost two consecutive scrums against the head. But in the end, a William O Morchoe wrap stopped the final Enniscorthy attack and Gorey had prevailed. Relief was the prevailing sentiment after the game and awareness that this fixture could have gone either way. Next stop a Leinster final against Boyne or Roscrea-birr Rebels.

Gorey: Niall O'brien, Stephen Scallan, Clement Power, Seán Byrne, Andrew Walsh, Stephen Duke, Robert Harrington, James Sinnott, Dominic Surace, William O Morchoe, Dean Redmond, Stephen Gardiner, Conor Hatton, Eddie Earle, Jordan Aherne (capt.). Subs. - Danny Hughes, Conor Cousins, Richard Deering, Stephen Hughes, Seán Carty, Frank Bellanova, Niall Brohan.

Enniscorthy: W. Furlong, R. Farrell, M. Steemers, J. White, M. Doyle, D. Walsh, B. Windsor, B. Kearney, D. Dunne, J. Murphy, D. Murphy, C. Mcdonald, D. Fortune, M. Fanning, C. Mernagh, B. Bolger, T. Ryan, J.barron, S. Bolger, T. Dempsey, M. Kehoe, J. Flood, N. Mccrea, R. Frayne, J. Squance, M. Mackey, C. O'neill, D. Mcdonald, N. Dunbar, S. Dwyer.