Gorey RFC U14's  22 - 3 Portlaoise RFC

Gorey travelled to Portlaoise on Saturday afternoon last for their penultimate outing in the Leinster League.

Currently topping the League standings Gorey were in determined mood and well prepared for a tough encounter
with a very well drilled Portlaoise side. With a strong wind and very heavy pitch conditions on the day, Portlaoise started with the wind advantage and drove forward from the kick off. Gorey second row Cameron Reyonld gathered cleanly and carried strongly up to half way with P.J. Barnes and Tom Cleary securing the ruck for scrum half Charlie McGuckin to take clean ball off the back before releasing Lloyd Stephens inside the opposition flanker at speed. Gorey drove 4 more phases with Shane Stokes, Liam Molloy and Cameron Reynolds all crossing the gain line in a period of patient Gorey forward play. Portlaoise defended well with some hard tackling testing the Gorey pack and finally winning a scrum inside their 22. The Portlaoise fullback cleared his lines and found the left touchline to relieve the pressure.

Superb delivery to the lineout in testing conditions by hooker Liam Molly saw Lloyd Stephens gather cleanly, offloading to Charlie McGuckin who released his backline at pace. Excellent distribution by Jack O'Mahony at 10, centres Joseph Naughton and Sean Bardan took play out wide on the left and up to the Portlaoise 10 metre line where winger Conor O'Toole arriving at speed gathered to cross for a well worked Gorey try.

10 minutes of tough rugby followed with both teams swapping possession in a period of open forward play which showed fantastic commitment from both packs. Gorey flanker Jack Cullen rucked fiercly playing one of his very best games in the Gorey colours. Wave after wave of Gorey attack pressure was twarted by the boot of the Portlaoise full back until on 20 minutes Portlaoise won a penalty inside the Gorey 22. Opting to kick with the wind advantage Portlaoise registered their opening 3 points. Gorey responded by rucking over the restart and driving two phases into the Portlaoise 22. Strong ball carrying by flanker Shane Stokes and prop Dylan Slator kept things tight and controlled as Gorey stormed forward.
From the third phase by second row P.J.Barnes powered for the tryline, crossing under the posts in magnificent fashion. Full back Killian Pierce added the points to see Gorey close out the half 12 - 3 to the good.

With the wind at their backs Gorey restarted with fire in their bellies, storming into the Portlaoise 22 after some excellent handling from the backline spread the play and stretched the Portlaoise line to breaking point. Gorey won a scrum on 5 metres after a good break by winger Jack Minogue was just stopped out wide by a panicked Portlaoise backline. Scrummaging powerfully Gorey secured possession with flanker Shane Stokes crossing for Gorey's third try of the afternoon. The scoreline reflected the dominance of the Gorey pack with Dylan Slator, Liam Molloy, Tom Cleary, second rows P.J.Barnes and Cameron Reynolds and Flankers Jack Cullen, replacement Sean Dunne and Stokes now at number 8 dominating proceedings. Eoin Buckley came in at 10 with Fionn O'Loughlin joining Naughton in the centre. Tom Higgins joined the action in the pack and Rory Heffernan earlier making way for Jack Minogue on the wing.  Gorey camped in the Portlaoise 22 for the last quarter were finding the blustery conditins very difficult. Time and again Gorey had the tryline at their mercy conceding no less that 4 forward passes due to the high winds spoiling certain try scoring passes. With 5 minutes remaining Conor O'Toole crossed for the final try to secure a table topping position for Gorey ahead of the draw for the Leinster League semi finals.

The referee brought proceedings to a close soon after ending a tremendous afternoons work by this young Gorey squad. The entire Gorey squad played a part in this victory with more than a few selection problems ahead for the coaching team such was the level of performance in all positions.

Final score Portlaoise RFC 3 Gorey RFC 22

Well done to the entire Gorey squad on a magnificent display.

Many thanks to Portlaoise RFC, match officials and to all our supporters on the day.

A special thanks to the Portlaoise clubhouse team for the refreshments enjoyed by all after the match.

The Under 14's squad and coaches would also like to congratulate our J1's on their fantastic Towns Cup victory over Dundalk at the weekend, well done to all.

Gorey Squad; Eoin Molloy, Dylan Slator, Liam Molloy, Lloyd Stephens, Cameron Reynolds, Tom Cleary, Carl Clarke, Tom Higgins, Jack Minogue, Shane Stokes, Killian Pierce, Joseph Naughton, Sean Bardon, Andy Kinsella, P.J. Barnes, Fionn O' Loughlin, Michael Duke, Eoin Buckley, Jack Cullen, Sean Dunne, Aaron Donnelly, Charlie McGuckin, Conor O'Toole, Jack O' Mahony, Cathal O'Reilly, Rory Heffernan, Daragh Brooks,
Alan Kelly.