posted — January 24th 2012

BUCCANEERS defeated Westport 14-8 in their refixed Connacht U-19 League match which was played at Carrowholly, Westport, on Sunday. The original pairing ended in some controversy and Buccs were a bit aggrieved having to travel to Mayo for a repeat. Despite that and heading north-west without the luxury of replacements for various reasons, these young Buccs knuckled down to the task on hand and came away with a worthy triumph.

They collectively rolled up their sleeves and slogged it out to the very end, with a decent all-round effort to secure a vital win that puts the Pirates back in the frame as this league approaches its climax. Sean Johnson opened the Buccs account with a smartly taken intercept try which Glen Costello converted for a 7-0 lead they held to halftime.

Westport scored a try early in the second half and then added a penalty when Buccs had a player sin-binned to take a 8-7 lead. But the midlanders response was of the right kind and John Gormley burst through for the decisive try which Costello converted to secure a hard-earned win. Gormley, Conor Hanniffy, Scott Flanagan and Dylan Lynch put in Trojan work in the pack while Costello and Ray O'Reilly linked well at halfback. Eoghan O'Reilly and Ben Carty also made notable contributions in the backline in this crucial victory. However, if these young Buccs wish to maximise their opportunity and potential, then much better attendance is needed at training as and from this Friday evening at 7 p.m.

BUCCANEERS:- E. O'Reilly; C. O'Reilly, B. Carty, R. McMickan, S. Johnson; G. Costello, R. O'Reilly; J. Gormley, S. Flanagan, S. Meunargia; J. Dooley, E. Donnelly; D. Lynch, C. Hanniffy and P. Hennessy.