Firsts 16 – Clontarf 25

This was a gut-wrenching defeat for Wegians, as they wqere leading for over 70 minutes of the match before succumbing in the end to a Clontarf side who made the most of their opportunities.

Wegians deservedly led 16-3 at half-time having dominated their opponents up front and coping comfortably with everything the talented Clontarf backline could throw at them. John Cleary had a 100% record with his goal-kicking, landing 3 penalties and a conversion to Scott Donald's superb try when he ran half the length of the field from the base of a scrum to score under the posts after just 12 minutes.

But the second-half was a completely different story, as Tarf's out-half David McAllister pinned the home side back into the corners with his lengthy kicks, and the north Dublin side turned line-outs into rolling mauls and made their simple game plan pay off with devastating effect. Warren O'Kelly got their first try on 47 minutes from one such move, then on the hour mark centre Conor Mahony broke from the 10 metre line to score on the right, reducing arrears to 16-13. Wegians were unable to use similar tactics to establish any territory, and then in a two minute spell near the end, the visitors won the match with two tries from substitutes, flanker Simon O'Donnell and then winger Daragh O'Shea wrapping up their bonus point with a fourth touchdown. So Wegians saw not only four points, but also a consolation bonus point slip from their grasp in the dying minutes. A bitterly disappointing end to a game that had promised so much for so long.