Navan move closer to league title success

Navan moved a step closer to that elusive Leinster League Div 1 crown and a place in the AIL play-offs when they demolished Garda at Balreask Old on Sunday. They will travel to Enniscorthy next Sunday safe in the knowledge that a bonus point victory will be sufficient to guarantee the league title. The Balreask Old side were quickly out of the blocks and managed an early try from Simon Hogan which was converted by Ryan Roberts. Kieran Mattson dodged his way past some poor Garda tackles and found Conor Brady, who is only back from injury, who set up Hogan to touch down under the posts. Good kicking from both sides was a hallmark of the game as well as big hits from Garda"s Etuini Vaka and the Navan quintet of Bernard Smyth, Brad Harris, David King, Roberts and John Duffy. However, Garda got their first points on the board through Dara Hughes and then Navan lost Roberts through a knee injury which he sustained after he tackled Garda"s David Howard. Simon Donnelly stepped in at out-half and Karl Manning replaced Roberts. Then, Mattson made another break into the Garda half, but this time he was caught and quickly turned over, but midway through the half made it 10-3 in favour of the home side. Navan produced a great training ground move close to the interval. From a scrum, Smyth gained possession and found Mattson who off-loaded to Manning who beat two defenders and set up substitute Thomas Clarke for another try which Donnelly converted. Soon after Navan added a third try when Manning went over and Donnelly claimed the extra points for a 24-3 interval advantage. The home side maintained the momentum after the resumption and added tries from Paul Feeney, Maurice McAuley, Mattson and Manning while Garda were rewarded with a late try which added some respectability to the scorebaord. Navan - M McAuley, T Geraghty, S Donnelly, M Harrington, S Hogan, R Roberts, K Mattson, E Dunne, C Brady, D King, B Harris, J Duffy, P Feeney, S Dawson, B Smyth. Subs - K Manning for Roberts. T Clarke for Dawson, Garda - D Hughes, E Kelly, C Cadigan, D Maher, R Jones, M Houlihan, K Matangi, D Duffy, B Silverlock, E Vaka, R Reidy, E Gormley, A Murphy, D Howard, D Brady. Navan 48 Garda 0 Navan seconds completed a miserable afternoon for Garda when they hammered the visitors in a one-sided Provincial Seconds League match at Balreask Old on Sunday. With Richie Ball and Paul Regan both grabbing two tries and David Delahunt and Alan O"Keeffe also crossing the line, Navan built up an unassailable lead. Brian McCormack and Ciaran Joyce shared the kicking duties, converting all six tries along with two penalties in a commanding performance. Navan - D Dixon, R Reilly, E Hanratty, D Brecknell, R Ball, N Finley, J Baker, P Regan, C Reilly, B McCormack, A O"Keeffe, C Joyce, R Coleman, D Ryan, D Delahunt, Subs - D McDonnell for Dixon, B Canty for Regan, B Kearns for McCormack. North Meath 22 Athboy 7 North Meath"s run in the McGee Cup continued on Sunday with a hard fought victory over local rivals Athboy. Tries from Simon Deevy (two) and Conall Finn provided the platform for the North Meath side while Finn"s accuracy from the boot also helped ensure the win. North Meath - G Hickey, C Galligan, R Lynch, A Campbell, P Beggan, B Smith, D Callaghan, A McEntee, C O"Brien, C Grey, C Finn, S Deevy, S Flood, R Newman, R Dillon. Subs - I Doogan, D O"Neill, S McManus, P Butler, P Shaw, P Carpenter. Navan"s third string moved above Boyne in the McGee Cup standings following their 10-5 victory over the Drogheda men, Eddie Maguire and Donal Walsh scored the tries for Navan and they were well supported by Darren Cherry and Brian Canty. The draw for the All-Ireland Junior Cup semi-finals was kind to Navan again last weekend when they were handed another home fixture, this time against Cill Dara. If the defending champions progress they will face either Tullamore or Cashel in the final. The semi-finals are scheduled for Saturday, 21st March with the final fixed for Sunday, 5th May.