Mayo rugby club claim Cawley Plate in Dunmore

Castlebar won the Cawley Plate after they recorded a superb 31-20 victory against Tuam, in Dunmore, on Saturday night.

The opening exchanges were keenly contested, with Castlebar making the vital breakthrough on six minutes when Sean O’Grady plundered a try, and he also added the subsequent conversion.

Backed by their vocal supporters, Castlebar upped the tempo and added their second try on 19 minutes. Some stern pressure by Castlebar ended with Sean Collins emerging from a crowd of players to just about cross the whitewash.

On 27 minutes, Tuam were awarded a penalty try, with Castlebar’s Bryan O’Flaherty subsequently shown a yellow card and was sin-binned. However, the Mayo men led 15-10 during the half-time break.

Tuam enjoyed a period of dominance at the start of the second half, with the industrious Matthew Ward guiding over a penalty for the north Galway men on 36 minutes, which reduced the deficit to just two points.

But Tuam's game plan received a setback on 39 minutes when Wynand Terblanche picked up a yellow card.

Perhaps the crucial moment of the game occurred on 67 minutes. The chasers were busily searching for a try but the energetic Sean O’Grady pinched possession and sprinted towards the Tuam posts and crossed the whitewash.

Castlebar’s Bryan O’Flaherty picked up a yellow card towards the end of the game, with Tuam’s Johannes Terblanche scoring a late touchdown.

However, Tuam’s brave late rally proved in vain as Castlebar had done enough to secure the spoils.