Sligo’s ten game unbeaten run finally came to an end on Sunday as they lost 21-5 to a superb Corinthians side in Corinthian Park. This win lifts the Galway side to the top of the table, and puts them firmly in the driving seat for the league title.
Despite going into the game unbeaten and league leaders, Sligo were very much the underdogs going into the game and it was the home side who lived up to their “favourites� tag with some intense early pressure. The home side signalled their intent early when they opted to turn down a kickable penalty chance to kick to touch and go for an early try from the resulting lineout. However Sligo were not over-awed and some excellent defence and big hits saw them weather the early Corinthians storm. In fact it was Sligo who had the best chance of the opening encounters when after ten minutes a training ground move off a Sligo lineout saw veteran out-half Gavin Foley link up with centre Andre Taurerewa whose delicate offload found the incisive line taken by the fullback David Gerrity who sliced through the Corinithans defence and found himself with only his opposing number to beat. Corinthians fullback Ronnie Ferguson made the important tackle and managed to drag the Sligo star down, Sligo looked to recycle quickly but a desperate knock-on ended the attack. It was high quality rugby on show now, and Corinthians responded immediately with a sniping break by their elusive scrum-half Greg Flaherty who broke down the left and kicked ahead, luckily Sligo covered well and Gerrity cleared the danger. It was Gerrity who again provided the next moment of excitement when another superb line took him clear of the Corinithians defence before he was dragged down deep inside the Galway side’s territory. Sligo recycled smoothly and switched the play wide with the Galway line at their mercy, however the final pass went to ground and the chance was gone.
Sligo were enraged soon after when during a ruck, a blatant kick to the head of a Sligo forward by Corinthians winger Kieran Dolan went unnoticed by the referee and escaped what would have been a certain red card. To add insult to injury it was Dunne who then opened the scoring minutes later with a well worked try. A slack Sligo defensive clearance was picked up by Ferguson who switched across the pitch before linking up with his flanker Barry McCann who released Dunne who finished well, cutting inside to score. Out-half Barry Sullivan missed the awkward conversion and Corinthians led 5-0. On the half hour mark, Sullivan extended the home side’s lead to eight with a well struck penalty from 30m out. With only minutes remaining in the half, Sligo launched one last attack and won a penalty 30m out, Gerrity kicked to the corner and fro the lineout Sligo mauled towards the Corinthians line. Corinithans infringed and Sligo were awarded a scrum 5m out, Sligo moved it quickly off the base of the scrum with scrum-half Wilders linking up with Culhane, who offloaded to tricky winger Brian Hynes. The Calry man reached for the line, and somehow managed to touch down to throw Sligo a lifeline and leave the half-time score 8-5.
Sligo looked to build on that late score early in the second half, but were put in their place by a spirited Corinthians side, who again began the half the brighter. Their early pressure was rewarded after 45 minutes when Sullivan’s boot extended their lead to 11-5. The game was now finely poised and the next score looked crucial. Sligo had the next chance when winger Ted Mulvaney released the marauding Tongan Mata Fifita who chased down his own kick and won a penalty 30m out. Gerrity’s effort however drifted wide. An injury to scrum-half Warner Wilders was another blow to Sligo, and he was replaced by Julian Rippon, who was returning to first team action after a long injury. Corinthians then produced the games vital score midway through the half when centre James Buckley burst through off a pass from Sullivan and crashed through the hapless Sligo cover to score under the posts. Sullivan added the easy extras and the home side were suddenly leading by 18-5 and the game looked beyond Sligo.
Sligo looked to respond but the players despite a heroic effort were unable to play their way back into the game. The Corinthians back-row were dominant in the loose, and despite the best efforts of the gallant Sligo forwards, the Galway side always looked comfortable in the closing stages. Corinthians added another penalty to extend the lead to 21-5 with ten minutes remaining and the game petered out as a contest with the Galway side content to stifle Sligo and play out time before the ref signalled the end of the contest, and with his whistle went Sligo’s title hopes. David Gerrity was the undoubted Sligo star on show, with his incisive running lines looking threatening at every opportunity as well as proving ultra-reliable with his tactical kicking. The forwards were brave throughout, always willing to put their bodies on the line and although they may have shown the effects of a tough season in the closing stages, this is an effective forward unit on which Sligo can build for the coming seasons.
Sligo will be disappointed with their performance on the day, as they have shown themselves to be a much more accomplished outfit than they showed on Sunday. However this side has been superb all year, and has produced a wonderful season despite stuggling with injuries in key areas, and the loss of two of their star backs midway through the season. Immense credit must be given to the Sligo coaching staff who have done a superb job with the resources available to them, especially head coach Joe Walsh whose tactical nous has seen the team put together their best league campaign in recent memory. He will now attempt to lift his side for the upcoming cup encounters, especially the crucial Heineken Junior Cup quarter-final against Ballina on March 1st.