By Conor Bates, Trinity Reporter.
Castleknock College was the venue for Trinity Football’s penultimate game of the season. After recovering from two losses to start the season, the team had amassed four impressive victories in a row and put themselves in prime position to make the playoffs for the first time in their history. Their opponents, the West Dublin Rhinos, had had a mixed season to that point and were looking to improve their record at the expense of their Dublin rivals.
The collegiate outfit didn’t have to wait long for their first score. On the first possession of the contest, they made an impact with their rushing game, which resulted in a touchdown. Rob McDowell and Josh Megan carried the ball effectively through contact, moving the ball all of 65 yards on the drive, and McDowell struck the killer blow to open the scoring. Peter Quinlan notched an extra point to give an early 7-0 lead. Trinity’s next drive saw them pursue the running game again. The potent ball carrying forced the Rhinos’ defence to move more men towards the line, giving Trinity a chance to probe downfield. Quarterback Dan Flynn saw his opportunity and launched a deep pass to wide receiver Daniel Murphy in the endzone. Again, Quinlan registered the extra point.
The defence were putting in an equally impressive shift. Captained by linebacker Stephen Carton, the unit cut through the opposition blocking on a number of occasions, forcing the home side to go three-and-out. Despite the excellent pressure at the line, and coverage downfield, the home side maintained a brilliant drive down the field, culminating in a short touchdown pass. The extra point attempt was notable as it hit the post in a rare occurrence, to make the score 14-6.
The second quarter saw more of the same from Trinity’s two units. As they went on the attack again, the offensive line opened up plenty of space for McDowell and Megan to carry through. However, due to the persistency of the rushing attack, both players began to bear the brunt of their exploits. Megan left the game completely, while McDowell took plays and series on the sideline. Trinity were not fazed, as Flynn was more than capable of finding his full complement of receivers. Daniel Murphy, Tyler Cooper and Alex Gurnee were all successful targets for the rookie quarterback, with Gurnee making a particularly nice catch before being tackled over the sideline. From an advanced position, the ball was handed to McDowell to drive home, which he duly did. The team attempted a two-point conversion this time, which fell short.
On the ensuing defensive stand, good pressure from Yousef Abdul-Wahab and Adam O’Shea forced the Rhino’s starting quarterback to throw in a hurry. The pass was picked off by linebacker David Barker, who is a former Castleknock College student, and carried 20 yards for a touchdown. The touchdown scorer had more reason to celebrate, as Quinlan brought the score to 27-6.
The response from the waning home side was fairly immediate. After decent progression, a very deep pass caught the visiting side off guard, and the receiver bounded home for six more points. This time their kicker had no trouble in dispatching an extra point.
The last action of the half came as the Trinity defence continued their excellent work and forced the Rhinos to punt. The punt got great depth and as a result, Trinity began on the 2 yard line. This proved to be no trouble for the speedy McDowell, who took the ball on the opening play, and carried it 88 yards for a touchdown. The score at the half was 34-13.
The second half was a very different affair to the first. With two injured runningbacks, Trinity’s ground game became less prolific, while their aerial attack was still a threat. However, they had trouble replicating the form they showed early on, and despite moving the chains on a number of occasions, they couldn’t find their way to the endzone. The defence, for the most part, remained the same in their success. Their efforts in all areas saw them hold their opposition at bay, even in a number of tight circumstances. A switch at quarterback saw the Rhinos bring a new element to their attack. A mix of passing, rushing and scrambling gave the Trinity defence cause for worry, but ultimately they held their own. Brian O’Driscoll and David Barker made vital knockdowns on passing attempts, while Carton picked off a pass, and cornerback Imar Coleman made a spectacular sliding interception. The Rhinos marshal threw in a good variety of play action and option plays to confound the college outfit, but in all departments Trinity were equal to their probes, shutting out the opposition, with some big hits from Carton, Alex Gurnee and Sam Whelan.
Trinity advance their record to 5-2 with their 5th successive win. In their final game they face the Cork Admirals, in Cork, with the two teams vying for a playoff berth. With so much on the line, this will be one of the biggest games all season, and Trinity will seek to continue their excellent form and cap off the best season of their history thus far.