Tullamore will need a complete performance to claim cup

With these sides having met twice already this season the form lines appear to suggest that Tullamore are in for a very difficult afternoon in Athlone tomorrow (Saturday, kick-off: 1.30pm).

A 27-10 victory for Navan in the Provincial Towns Cup at the Meath venue combined with a 16-9 win in Spollanstown last October in the Leinster League gives some indication of how Navan have had the upper hand in recent meetings between the two sides.

However, there is a precedent for Tullamore turning a bad run of results around in this competition. In the quarter-final Tullamore faced Seapoint having lost four successive fixtures against the Killiney team in the previous four years, but they reversed that form spectacularly with a 20-16 victory that knocked out the reigning champions. On that windswept and damp day Tullamore had to show great resilience in the face of consistent Seapoint pressure, opportunism to take their chances when they came up and nerves of steel to take their penalties and hold their discipline in the closing stages. All of these qualities will be needed once more in copious measures if they are to get the result required in Dubarry Park.

Navan have been conceding approximately one try per game all season and it is this defensive strength that Tullamore must aim to break down as they prepare for this final. In particular the hard tackling New Zealander Sylvanus Iro at number 8 and Leinster Junior representative Bernard Smyth at openside have been known to dominate the fringes of the rucks and drive players back in the tackle and they will represent a huge challenge for their opposite numbers Donal and David Milne. Tullamore?s backline have the sharpness and the wit to unlock their Navan counterparts, but in order to do this a platform of possession and territory must be established by the pack first. Australian Ryan Roberts will be content to use his boot and keep the Tullamore pack on the back foot all day, so it is imperative that the men in red and black put some pressure on the Navan out half and don?t let him dictate the pace of the game, while the front five must show complete authority at set plays to ensure that they are providing good attacking ball rather than static or defensive possession.

Gearóid O?Grady?s ingenuity and Rory Deverell?s pace have been crucial weapons for Tullamore this year and they will thrive in an environment where they can feed off opposition turnovers. The generation of these turnovers will be largely the responsibility of the back row and centres who will be looking to turn their opposite numbers over in the tackle, so once again we see how important these midfield players will be to the Tullamore cause.

Ultimately as with all cup finals, the successful execution of the basic skills of the game will be the biggest part of securing victory for either team, while both O?Grady and Roberts can be depended to on to punish any disciplinary indiscretions that may arise. If Tullamore can eliminate errors while playing the game at a high level of intensity, they have shown enough talent all year and even in defeat to Navan on both occasions to prove that victory here is highly possible, even if a narrow defeat looks marginally more likely on the balance of probabilities.