Dundalk Sharks Under 9s travelled to Navan on Saturday for what was always going to be a tough encounter after the reverse fixture in Mill Road left the boys with a point to prove. The boys went in with great spirits after an excellent run of form since the turn of the year and were confident of winning away to a strong Navan side. 30 Sharks made the journey and were split into 3 even teams of 10, the Black Sharks, guided by Head Coach Jason Malone and John McDonnell, the White Sharks guided by Mini Coordinator Fergus O’Callaghan and Paul McEvoy and the Silver Sharks guided by Hugh Pheifer and Stuart Jones against 3 Navan teams.

The Black Sharks sprang out of the traps with a 7-0 demolition of their Navan counterparts, tries from Ciaran Tiernan (2), Kieran McArdle (2), Edward Finnegan, Leo MacRuairi and Ronan McDonnell. However that only told half the story with ferocious rucking, tackling, line breaks and exquisite passing from the likes of Conal O’Callaghan, Robert Malone, Edward Finnegan, Ronan McDonnell and Peter Rice among others nullifying their Navan threat and building a solid platform for the try scorers to run riot. After the match Ciaran Tiernan and Joe O’Donnachadha went to the silver sharks and James Lucas and Ciaran Finnegan joined the Black Sharks.

Match 2 for the Black Sharks was a much tougher affair and Navan had a very strong and physical side who were determined to make their presence felt, exemplified by their large Samoan. The Dundalk lads rose to their task well with again O’Callaghan, Finnegan, Malone and Ronan McDonnell, who was having arguably his finest match in a Sharks shirt dominating the physical battle and nullifying the Navan threat. This set the stage for a comfortable 5-1 win with Kieran McArdle scoring 4 fantastic tries and Ronan McDonnell with the other for Dundalk. This set up a finale with the third Navan side, who were determined not to let the Black Sharks complete a clean sweep. A ferocious battle ensued with Conal O’Callaghan, who was in inspired form, Robert Malone, Edward Finnegan and Ronan McDonnell excelling at the ruck, but Navan were excellent too. The game fluctuated right to the death with the final score 4-4, Conal O’Callaghan, Ronan McDonnell. Leo MacRuairi and Kieran McArdle with Dundalk’s tries. Although the Black Sharks were disappointed not to win all three matches, Head Coach Jason was delighted with the team’s display.

The White Sharks were finding it tougher going against the team that proved to be the best of the 3 Navan sides. Although the Dundalk men gave a good account of themselves and competed well, Navan were winning more of the battles competing at the ruck and making their tackles. The Dundalk lads weren’t out of the match at any stage and showed glimpses of great potential, not least in two excellent tries scored by Luke Andrews and Laurence Jones, however the final score line of Navan 4 Dundalk White Sharks 2 was probably a fair reflection of how this one went. The lads moved on, determined to put in a better showing in game 2. And that they certainly did, with the ranks bolstered by the arrival of Ciaran Tiernan and Joe O’Donnachadha they went about their task manfully, with 2 brilliant tries from Ciaran Tiernan and one each from Aaron McGuinness Smith and Mark Leavy answered by a solitary reply from Navan, the game ending 4-1 and a fantastic performance from the White Sharks. Onto game 3 and the White Sharks were by now in full stride determined to come out on top in their final encounter. It was a ding-dong affair which, although in the balance for a large part of the game eventually went 4-3 in favour of the White Sharks, two excellent tries from Joe O’Donnachadha, and one each from Aaron McGuinness Smith and Ciaran Tiernan. After a tough first match Dundalk RFC Mini Coordinator Fergus O’Callaghan was delighted with the boy’s commitment, skill and will to win which eventually resulted in the White Sharks emerging victorious in two matches out of three.

On to the Silver Sharks and their first match was a bruising encounter which was a contest between Dundalk’s better ball handling and running skills against the Navan sides increased physicality, power and commitment. The match started positively with Dundalk going 2-1 and 3-2 ahead thanks to excellent tries from Cian Burns, Niall Brennan and James O’Connor. However the Dundalk Sharks faithful never felt comfortable as there were too many tackles being missed and Navan dominating the physical battles. Pressure told in the end with Navan going 4-3 ahead and although another fine James O’Connor try levelled proceedings at 4-4, Navan dominated the closing stages of the match with two unanswered tries resulting in a 6-4 final score line in favour of he home side. Game 2 was a much better performance for the Silver Sharks; although up against an excellent Navan side they were finding it tough. However for much of the match they were giving as good as they were getting with the match delicately poised at 5-5 entering the final stages, Dundalk’s tries coming from James O’Connor (3) and Jack Gilmore (2). However like the first match some slack defending at the death undid much of the fantastic work and the final score ended Navan 7, Dundalk Silver Sharks 5.

It was a credit to the Silver Sharks and coaches Stuart and Hugh that they didn’t let the heads drop and approached the final match more determined than ever and, although still plagued by some of the slack defending that had heretofore cost them dearly, they were very much having the better of things. By the end of the match the Silver Sharks were in full flow, the final score ending 6-3 in favour of the away side with tries from Sam Malone, Niall Brennan, Milo Moore, Fionn Duffy and 2 from Jack Gilmore, who coach Hugh Pheifer was hugely impressed with and felt he was overall the Silver Sharks best player on the day.

All in all it was a very tough, but ultimately satisfying, war of attrition for the Sharks at Navan, on a bitterly cold morning where the boys acquitted themselves very well. Mini Co-ordinator Fergus and Head Coach Jason were delighted with proceedings and although there is still plenty to work on, the progress from the boys has been exceptional and is there for all to see.