Mayo rugby club secure hard-fought victory in Sligo

Castlebar Rugby Club faced a difficult away assignment against Sligo in round 3 of the Junior One (B) League on Saturday, however, the Cloondeash outfit recorded a hard-earned 20–14 victory.

Castlebar travelled with a depleted squad due to injuries and player unavailability and had only one substitute available for the matchday squad, however, on a positive note Shane Fox made his debut appearance for the first 15, taking his place on the wing.

Despite being up against a full strength Sligo squad, Castlebar started strongly and enjoyed the majority of possession in the opening half, yet they found it difficult to break down a determined Sligo defence.

However, Castlebar’s persistence eventually paid off late in the first half when Adam Murphy crossed the line for a deserved try, giving the visitors a 5–0 lead.

Castlebar suffered a setback when second-row forward Bryan O'Flaherty was forced to leave the field through injury before half-time

Castlebar wasted little time extending their advantage after the restart. Within a minute of the second half, an excellent line break from Óran Cresham resulted in another try, with Orann Bourke adding the conversion to put Castlebar 12–0 ahead.

Sligo responded with renewed determination and got themselves back into the contest with a converted try, reducing the deficit to 12–7.

Castlebar responded with a penalty to stretch their lead to 15–7, but Sligo refused to go away, crossing for another converted try to leave just one point between the sides at 15–14.

With the clock ticking down, Castlebar, led by Carl Jackson, dug deep and showed tremendous character and determination. Their efforts were rewarded when Orann Bourke crossed for a crucial late try to seal a valuable away victory.

It was an excellent team effort from Castlebar, particularly given the limited squad available and the challenges posed by injuries. The result reflects the resilience and commitment shown by the players throughout the contest.

Castlebar welcome University of Galway to Cloondeash next Sunday, November 15, and this fixture will kick-off at 2.30 p.m.