Ashbourne put things right on Saturday night completing a whitewash over Mullingar on a snowy Saturday night in Mullingar. Putting aside the disappointment in the Towns Cup the previous week, the team showed tremendous resolve to put their league campaign back on track.

Fielding without injured Jordan and Glennon and with Cathal Field on the bench, Ashbourne took the field determined to make amends for last week. Swanipoel was quickly into his stride directing his backline with authority, and Sean Casey was showing up early. The pack also took early dominance with Gavin, Wall and man of the match Frank Keegan taking command in the scrum while Eugene Gallagher and Shane Eoin Kennedy were dominant in the line out.

After 12 minutes Gavin Kennedy slotted home the first penalty opportunity of the night. 5 minutes later Frank Keegan, who is an excellent ball carrier, rampaged down the pitch, having been put into the clear by Barry O'Neill, only to be stopped by a high tackle. Kennedy was just off with the goal attempt. Ashbourne continue to build the pressure. Winning their own scrum ball, they also continuously disrupted the Mullingar set piece, turning it over on a regular basis. It was from a scrum that Ashbourne put the pressure on. From the ensuing ruck Gavin Kennedy broke blind from 10 metres out to score an excellent try, but he failed with the conversion.

But Ashbourne then let Mullingar back in the game in the 29th minute. In their first foray into the Ashbourne 22, they picked up a penalty to close the gap to 5 points. Within 5 minutes Mullingar scored a converted try which was mainly due to poor tackling in the Ashbourne backline. After all the dominance Ashbourne turned at half time down by 2 points.

The second half started with Ashbourne trying to step up the pressure. With McManus on for Magee, Kennedy kicked a penalty into the corner. A series of line outs and scrums eventually resulted in Mullingar conceding a penalty in the 6th minute which pushed Ashbourne back into the lead. From the kick-off Ashbourne knocked on and conceded field position. From the scrum Mullingar were awarded a penalty, but the kicker was off with his attempt.

Impressive Swanipoel was injured in the 20th minute, with Field slotting in on the wing and Stephen O'Neill moving into outhalf. The line continued to move well without actually making the telling break. Casey continued to trouble Mullingar with his strength and pace, but he did not see enough of the ball. Kennedy got another penalty chance in the 36th minute for a high tackle, and he pushed the lead out to 4 points.

One more chance came to Kennedy in the 44th minute when Emery was tackled in the air but he was off with the kick.

After 10 minutes of injury time a relieved Ashbourne were delighted with the win and maintaining their 2nd position in the league.

Next week Ashbourne 1st XV are not in action, but the stage is taken by the 2nd XV's Towns Cup on Sunday against the fancied local rivals Boyne. The game is at Ashbourne with a 3pm kick-off.
 

Full-Time Score:

Mullingar    .............. 10
Ashbourne    .............. 14

Best for Ashbourne:
Gavin Kennedy, Eugene Gallagher, Peter Swanipoel, Shane Eoin Kennedy

Man of the Match:
Frank Keegan

Tries:
Gavin Kennedy x 1

Penalties:
Gavin Kennedy x 4

Team List:
Barry O'Neill, Dermot Colreavy,  Eric Greene, Stephen O'Neill, Sean Casey, Peter Swanipoel, Gavin Kennedy, Frank Keegan, John Gavin (Capt), Alan Wall, Eugene Gallagher, Shane Eoin Kennedy, David McManus, Allan Gallagher, Jason Emery

Subs: Ciaran Boylan, Paul O'Brien, Cathal Field, Shane Rock, Stephen Magee