Late heartbreak for ‘Hinch

Late heartbreak for ‘Hinch

15 December 2021

THERE was more late heartbreak 

for winless Ballynahinch on Saturday as Lansdowne scored two late tries 

to deny them even a losing bonus 

point and ensure they spend the Christmas break at the bottom of the 1A table. 

Adam Craig had rung the changes in his back line with Greg Hutley starting at full back, Tagen Strydom and Ryan Wilson partnering in midfield and Ronan Patterson returning to the wing after some excellent performances for the seconds.

Kyle McCall was a late withdrawal up front so Peter Cooper and Nacho Caldera Crespo were the starting props, while Josh Hanlon continued to deputise at hooker for the injured skipper Zack McCall.

Conditions were extremely poor on Saturday morning, with wind and rain, but relented for kick-off, much to the delight of the Lansdowne faithful who had bad memories of a 40-point drubbing in bad weather the last time they stepped on to Ballymacarn Park.

Ballynahinch played with the stiff breeze in the first half and took the lead with a Hutley penalty on 5 minutes. The first quarter was a strangely flat affair with neither side able to stamp their authority on the match amid a series of errors and indiscipline. 

As the half wore on Ballynahinch began to carry with more authority and probably should have gone further ahead. A couple of half chances went begging, including a fine break up the middle from Cooper.

There were also a couple of missed penalty chances and Lansdowne managed to regroup and equalise with a Stephen Madigan penalty on 37 minutes.

A failed touch finder then allowed Lansdowne to attack the home line inside the last few minutes of the half and despite a strong defensive effort Ballynahinch old boy Clive Ross eventually drove over underneath the posts and Lansdowne turned around with a seven-point lead and the wind at their backs.

An excellent third quarter brought the home side firmly back into the game. As is so often the case at Ballymacarn Park it proved simpler to play into the wind and Ballynahinch were excellent as they drove Lansdowne back.

Scrum-half Conor McAuley, who was a threat all afternoon, made a great break from the back of a ruck on 49 minutes and managed to offload to the supporting Hutley for a try under the posts. Hutley’s conversion levelled the score and the home side had plenty of momentum. 

However, Lansdowne rallied as Ballynahinch tired, kicking more intelligently and taking the sting out of the home effort. Hard won yards were countered with good kick and chase work from the Dubliners and Ballynahinch struggled to make further inroads.

The game looked set for a draw until a loose kick into midfield on 78 minutes gave Lansdowne multiple options to attack.

One missed tackle later and they were behind Ballynahinch’s lines and two rucks after that they had far 

too many numbers in attack for a scrambling home defence and replacement Jamie Kavanagh scored in the corner.

A superb touchline conversion from Madigan meant that Ballynahinch could only salvage a draw at best 

from the match, but disaster struck deep in injury time when winger Michael Silvester intercepted a wide pass to run in from his own half and deny the home side a losing bonus point.

Ballynahinch (1-21): Nacho Cladera Crespo, Josh Hanlon, Peter Cooper, Tommy Donnan, John Donnan, Bradley Luney, Ollie Loughead, Callum Irvine, Conor McAuley, Jack Milligan, Aaron Cairns, Ryan Wilson, Tagen Strydom, Ronan Patterson, Greg Hutley, Ben Cullen, Conor Piper, Tom Martin, Diego Vidal Souza, Chris Gibson, Paddy Wright.