Gonzaga College vs Blackrock College

Bank of Ireland Leinster Rugby Schools
Senior Cup Final Preview
BY DES BERRY
GONZAGA COLLEGE vs
BLACKROCK COLLEGE
On the bare statistics, this has all
the appearance of a David and
Goliath final as Blackrock College
chase a 70th Bank of Ireland
Leinster Schools Senior Cup at the
RDS Arena.
This would be to disregard the serious
progress made by Gonzaga College
over the last decade, beginning with their
domination of the Leinster Senior League,
winning four of the last five.
As the power base of the traditional top
six schools has eroded, St Michael’s
College have made the leap to join
Blackrock, while there are significant
signs that Gonzaga are on the way with
Newbridge College climbing the ladder
too.
As recently as 2019, the Sandford Road
school made it to the final for the first
time, falling short to St Michael’s.
They have built on this experience to
outmanoeuvre Clongowes Wood, Wesley
and St Mary’s in impressive fashion this
year.
Coach Declan Fassbender has put in
place a framework around which the
players have been able to express
themselves.
They trade on mobility and ingenuity,
their tall locks Thomas Murphy and Luke
O’Callaghan coming into their own as
the competition has evolved.
They already boasted an anchorman in
tighthead George Morris in the front row
and a well-balanced loose forward trio.
Meath’s All-Ireland minor-winning
midfielder Paul Wilson has the athleticism
to match his nose for the grind.
Captain Noah Maguire is a hardy soul,
picking up scraps and putting down ball
carriers, while Gavin O’Donnell is always
on the lookout to turnover the ball.
The back division is backboned by the
hard to put down Jody Browne at inside
centre and Ireland Schools candidate
Hugo McLaughlin at full-back.
For all that, Blackrock have been ruthless
in how they have dealt with Terenure and
Newbridge, amassing 89 points for the
loss of five.
10 | Leinster Schools Senior Cup Final 2022
GONZAGA COLLEGE VS BLACKROCK COLLEGE