Cavan RFC edge derby

Cavan RFC finished their season on a high note with victory over local rivals Virginia in an entertaining clash at Swellan Park last Saturday afternoon. The hosts took the lead tne minutes in through a penalty from out-half Salesi Tuipoloto but from there on Virginia upped the ante and began to create some decent scoring opportunities. A good break from impressive number eight Fintan O"Reilly almost resulted in a try for Virginia only for Cavan to turn the ball over after some ferocious defending and eventually clear through Martin Reilly. With Leigh Jackson and Mattie Fifita in superb form for Cavan, they looked dangerous on the break but found the going tough against a disciplined and well-organised Virginia defence led by captain Damien Agasse. An excellent 50 metre penalty from Virginia out-half Gary McNally levelled matters ten minutes in. The first try of the match arrived eight minutes before the interval when a mistake in the Cavan defence was punished by Fintan O"Reilly, who touched down for a timely score to send the visitors 8-3 in front. Visibly lifted by the try, Virginia raised their game but just as they looked set to assert themselves, Cavan drew level when a break from Tuipoloto started a move which involved Robert Beattie and eventually saw the consistent Dan Leddy go over in the corner, much to the delight of the home support. The second half quickly devloped into a war of attrition, with Virginia threatening only through Fintan reilly and on a couple of occasions through the boot of Matthew McWeeney, while Cavan seemed reliant on Fifita and Jackson for breaks. Virginia edged in front 11-8 with a well-struck penalty from their out-half on the 25-minute mark but the hosts soon grabbed the initiative and went over for their second try when Fifita and Tuipoloto combined to set up Leddy for his second of the match. At 13-11 the game was still in the melting pot but Cavan asserted themselves well in the final ten minutes. A number of super drives exerted severe pressure on the Virginia defence and they eventually caved in the 38th minute when winger Dinny Mulvey, a brother of county footballer Lorcan, went over for a neat try to wrap up the result after what was hard-fought tussle featuring some decent rugby. Cavan: Alan Brady, Dara Brady, Gerry Mulligan, Myles O"Reilly, Martin Reilly, Garry Browne (c), Shane McCormack, Mattie Fifita, Leigh Jackson, Dinny Mulvey, Robert Beattie, Mark Hyland, Dan Leddy, Larry Burke, Morgan Farrell Virginia: Sam McQuade, Ian Carolan, Damien Agasse (c), Thomas Owens, PJ Feighery, Ben Gilmore, Fergus Tighe, Fintan O"Reilly, Daragh Carolan, Gary McNally, Enda Brady, Breffni O"Reilly, Matthew McWeeney, Marc Doughty, Tony McLoughlin