Navan almost there

In the shadow of the Rock of Cashel on Saturday Navan chiselled out a 20-6 victory that leaves them on the cusp of a major breakthrough. For the past 10 years Navan have made concerted efforts to make the transition from junior to senior status. Now they are within touching distance of the big prize with only Galway side Monivea standing between them and a place in the All-Ireland League Division 3 next season - the first team from Meath to achieve such a coveted status. Navan simply have to win against Monivea on Saturday and their aim of becoming an AIL club will become reality. After two rounds the Balreask Old side lead the play-off table with eight points, City of Derry are next with six, Cashel have five and Monivea have yet to get off the mark. The Connacht junior champions suffered a 3-33 defeat to City of Derry last Saturday and this setback added to a defeat by Cashel in the opening round means they have nothing but pride to play for on Saturday. It is a scenario that leaves Navan as favourites, but all too often in the past that has been a tag that has weighed heavily on the players" shoulders. This week Brad Harris and the other members of the Navan management team will be telling the players again and again that there is still a job of work to be done. Navan showed on Saturday just how good they can be when it comes to defending combined with the ability to take scores with clinical precision. Cashel were founded in 1919 and they would love to mark their 90th anniversary by clinching a place in the play-offs. That"s still a realistic prospect for them, but they shipped a big blow to achieving that ambition by losing to Navan on their own Spafield ground. A big crowd made the long trip to Tipp from the Royal County to support Brad Harris and his boys and they were rewarded with a gutsy, street-wise performance with the forwards outstanding in a fine team display. Quick to the breakdown Navan didn"t over-commit to the rucks leaving enough bodies to defend their try-line and they did that with determination and skill. Navan were especially good in the scrums where they used power and cohesion to subdue the much-vaunted Cashel tight five. The Balreask Old side manufactured two tries in the second-half, one a deftly taken score by Simon Hogan the other coming from Sylvanus Iro who intercepted a pass in midfield before racing clear to score under the posts. Both tries were converted by Karl Manning who also did well to steer the ball between the posts from two penalty kicks in the opening half. Cashel"s most famous son is Denis Leamy who only a few weeks ago helped Ireland to a Grand Slam. How they could have done with him on Saturday as Navan dominated in the scrums and provided themselves with a solid platform to go on and win the game. The Navan supporters were armed with flags and klaxons provided by PRO Colm Horton and they made plenty of noise as they supported their team to possibly one of the most significant victories since the club was founded back in 1924. It all made for a highly entertaining, raucous occasion. Navan had received a break earlier in the week when Bernard Smyth was deemed to have been wrongly sent-off against Tullamore in the All-Ireland Junior Cup final. Smyth played a big part in ensuring that the Navan pack prevailed against Cashel. There were heroes all over the field for Navan as they defeated Cashel and set themselves up for the game against Monivea on Saturday that is sure to attract a big crowd to Balreask Old.