THE FOUR IRISH provinces have a rare weekend off but anyone looking for some high-quality rugby action won’t do better than heading along to Lakelands in Dublin tomorrow when Terenure host Young Munster in the Bateman Cup final.
This clash between two of Ireland’s leading clubs will also be streamed live on YouTube, with kick-off at 2.30pm on Saturday afternoon, but nothing beats being there.
As ever, the vocal Terenure fans will turn out in force on their home patch and there will be strong travelling support from Limerick. These are the diehards who know all about the joy of club rugby but anyone yet to be converted is encouraged to get to Lakelands Park.
“Most people who come down to watch All-Ireland League or Cup games for the first time are really surprised at the standard,” says Young Munster head coach Ger Slattery.
“The standard is really, really good. Look at the names on the teamsheet from both sides for tomorrow. Terenure have Colm de Buitléar, Peter Sylvester, Jordan Coghlan – they’ve all been pros and here they are.
“The quality surprises people but you get the whole package. You get a good quality game, you get a bit of old-school banter on the sideline, you can have that craic with opposition supporters because it’s so close-knit, a few pints, bring the kids, mix with friends, so it’s a good day all-round for a tenner.”
The Cookies’ own lineup for tomorrow features some familiar names with current Munster wing Shay McCarthy, back row Ruadhan Quinn, and tighthead prop Keynan Knox starting alongside ex-Connacht out-half Shane O’Leary, while Munster hooker Chris Moore is on the bench.
Terenure’s squad also includes captain Harrison Brewer, who has been a professional in Japan and New Zealand, as well as ex-Munster wing Conor Phillips, former Connacht prop Conán O’Donnell, and place-kicking specialist Caolan Dooley, who will soon join the Chicago Hounds in Major League Rugby.
Then there are the core clubmen who every AIL club relies on, the likes of Young Munster captain Alan Kennedy, loosehead David Begley, locks Tom Goggin and Sean Rigney, scrum-half Jack Lyons, and centre Harry Fleming. Terenure have their own crew of unheralded stalwarts.
The Dublin side are the reigning Division 1A champions and they’re sitting fourth in the table this season after nine rounds. Young Munster are only four points behind them in sixth position and notched a 13-6 win when the sides met in Tom Clifford Park back in November.
‘Nure are also the defending Bateman Cup champions, winning it for the first time last season when they hammered Buccaneers in the decider.
Tomorrow is a big day for Young Munster, who have only won this competition once before all the way back in the 1927/28 season.
“It’s a huge deal to the club,” says Slattery. “Historically, it would mean so much to so many of the club’s supporters but equally to the players. We know the carrot that’s there in terms of winning a national trophy.
“We’re playing the AIL and Bateman Cup holders in their own back yard but we’ve been successful in Munster Senior Cups and put ourselves in this position by coming through some tough games against the likes of Cork Con. We’re really up for the challenge.”
Slattery is in his first season as Young Munster’s head coach having succeeded Gearoid Prendergast when he joined Munster as their academy manager at the start of this campaign.
36-year-old Slattery was already a Cookies legend after 15 years playing at hooker for the club, as well as being an assistant coach in recent seasons.
The former Ireland U20 international won four caps for Munster in the 2013/14 season and was unlucky not to get more.
But Young Munster is where his heart has always been.
“The club means everything to me,” says Slattery.
“I came out of school and joined when I was 18. I’ve been there since. It’s a unique club, that’s for sure. I know when you’re involved in any club, they would all say that but I just love our buzz, the craic, the old-school environment as well. I enjoy that side of it.
“What I’m really passionate about is trying to be successful with Young Munsters. If you look back at it, we haven’t won the All-Ireland League since 1993. But we know the challenge that’s there and how we’re up against Clontarf, Terenure, Cork Con really going for it. But I’m driven by being as successful as possible.”
Slattery is a full-time teacher at St Munchin’s College in Limerick, as well as being the head coach of the school’s senior team. Add in three children and he has a whole lot on his plate.
He is highly regarded within domestic rugby circles as an excellent young coach who has the potential to rise through the game, but it’s not that simple for someone like him who would be intrigued to get a chance higher up in the future.
Indeed, Terenure boss Sean Skehan is another young coach in that bracket having led the Dublin club to great success. The next step isn’t as obvious.
“It’s a funny one,” says Slattery. “I definitely think teaching is my career. I’d never rule out coaching at a higher level if the opportunity came but I don’t see how it fits in.
“The pathway for young coaches in Ireland is a funny one. For someone like me to leave a teaching job to pursue coaching would be a really big step. Where do I go to do that? Lower down in an academy position and possibly take a salary cut? It’s a funny one.
“Not many guys go from coaching club rugby into a higher role in the pro game. Rugby is a huge passion of mine, I’d love a crack off something but I don’t see how it would be possible without me making a big sacrifice that I don’t know if I could afford to make.”
It’s an interesting subject that is worth returning to elsewhere but for now, Slattery is concentrating on his Young Munster team trying to win a trophy in hostile territory tomorrow.
It promises to be a cracking Bateman Cup final.
- This article was updated at 2.38pm to note that Munster hooker Chris Moore is on the Young Munster bench for tomorrow’s game.
