Spirited Navan display against Garryowen

No victory on this occasion, but at the end of this AIB Senior Cup tie at Balreask Old on Saturday there was respectability for Navan who hosted the AIL big boys from Limerick and showed plenty of spirit and fight - at least in the second-half. At one stage soon after the break it looked like the Limerick giants were going to rack up the proverbial cricket score. They led by 34-7 and were cruising. Instead of collapsing at the wicket the home side re-marshalled their forces, put in a strong finish and at the final whistle were on the front-foot. Navan's main focus this season is consolidation in the AIL Div 3 and who could blame them. Competitions such as this are useful for giving players a run out. They are also distractions and a sustained run could deplete Navan's resources. The Navan management opted to give a number of players on the fringes of the squad a chance in this contest. The front row was transformed with Eddie Dunne, Dara Harlin and David King taking up positions at the coalface. Among those who sat this one out was proud New Zealander player/coach Ryan Roberts who will surely be back next week to give some guidance from behind the scrum. Despite the result this was a memorable occasion for David Geraghty who ran in two tries in the second-half to put a respectable slant on the final scoreline Another regular who did well was Karl Manning who engineered a sensational try for Navan after just eight minutes when he won the ball deep inside his own '22' and ran the length of the pitch to get a touchdown. The same player converted. The size of the task facing Navan from the off was highlighted two minutes after Manning's early score when Garryowen broke through for their first touchdown from Diarmuid McMahon, skilfully converted by Donal Sheehan. It was the perfect response to their early setback with McMahon making the most of some less than robust tackling from Navan who will surely have learned some valuable lessons from this encounter. On a pleasant, autumnal day conditions were perfect for an expansive game and that's exactly the strategy the visitors from Munster adapted. Garryowen brought a strong team to Balreask Old and were eager to get back to winning ways after shipping a heavy defeat against Blackrock the previous week. Among their most dangerous players was Gerry Hurley who formerly turned out for Munster. They clearly felt that they could spread the ball around the pitch and punch holes in the Navan defence. And they weren't wrong, at least early on. After the shock of conceding the first try Garryown bounced back to lead 20-7 at the break with Declan Lavery and Diarmuid McCarthy tagging on tries while Sheehan slotted over a penalty. Further tries from Alan Gaughan and Anthony Kavanagh added to two Sheehan conversions put Garryowen 34-7 in front with just 51 minutes on the clock. You feared for Navan who struggled to get a foothold in the game. The home side particularly lost out at the breakdown and invariably came off the worse in the collisions. Navan got a good taste of the kind of tempo the game is played at in the upper echelons of the AIL as Garryowen fed off quick ball from the rucks to set in motion a series of moves. Navan needed some spark in midfield to get their back-line moving in a way that would find a way through the tight Garryowen defence. Maybe the Munster side took their foot off the gas feeling that the job was already done? However, Navan deserve credit for dominating the closing stages and adding a sheen of respectability to the scoreline. There was no coincidence that Navan's revival coincided with a couple of typical breaks by Kieran Mattson and Simon Hogan. From one of these Navan almost got a touchdown midway through the second-half with Mattson, Alan Hickey and Geraghty involved. The move ended with John Davis knocking on within a few metres of the line. It was a sign of things to come. Navan got it right on 66 minutes when they moved the ball from a scrum in the middle of the pitch. Davis did well to quickly off-load to Geraghty who showed plenty of pace to get in for a touchdown. Manning converted. Moving the ball through the phases with speed and control Navan grabbed a third try on the stroke of full-time. Mattson broke quickly from the base of a ruck, off-loaded to Manning who passed to Geraghty and he raced away to get the try. Manning pulled the conversion attempt well wide although he may have being seeking to keep the ball alive. Navan showed plenty of self-belief in the last half-hour and were the better team although by the time they found their best form Garryowen were already well on the way to a deserved victory. Navan - K Manning, D Geraghty, S Hogan, J Davis, T Geraghty, A Hickey, K Mattson; E Dunne, D Harlin, D King, B Harris, S Byrne, P Feeney, T Clarke, L Jackson. Subs - J McCaghy for Harlin, E King for D King, D Crinion for Harris, F Power for Byrne, D Delahunt for Hickey. Garryowen - S Moloney, L Bourke, D McMahon, C Doyle, A Gaughan, G Hurley, C Murray; J Harney, R Meyer, D Lavery, D Sheehan, P Neville, A McCloskey, A Kavanagh, D Sherry.