SO alike in so many ways, Constitution and St Mary's are living proof that there is life after the mass defections to the English League and that the All-Ireland League still has plenty to offer. It somehow seemed appropriate that these mirror images were still inseparable after 80 minutes at Temple Hill on Saturday.
Both have responded to the close season drain by giving youth its head. Granted, given a back division with an average of 21, St Mary's are very much the new kids on the block but Constitution, with the 27 year old centres Niall Murray and Brian Walsh relative veterans, never mind 30 year old Kenny Murphy, aren't far behind.
They set about each other in a first half in which a try beckoned with practically every move. There was a refreshing irreverence about the 30 man rugby on view, in an attacking sense at any rate.
Five tries came, yet there could easily have been more, while it would also be fair to say that St Mary's didn't play nearly as well as they can. Theirs was a performance of cameos in a wildly meandering, fluctuating contest. Fiji versus the Barbarians on a beach might have had more of a pattern to it.
When released, Dennis Hickie scorched the turf, his blistering try after Craig Fitzpatrick and Kevin Nowlan combined to bring the newly selected Irish `A' winger into the line, pushing St Mary's 14-5 in front.
Constitution appeared almost too wary and lay too deep. But St Mary's were the same, and Constitution retorted with their second and third tries along the backline. It was great to watch and after 37 points by the break, a classic was in the making.
Somehow it never quite happened, though you were never inclined to take your eye off it. An almighty bout of fisticuffs led to sending offs for the Constitution prop Paul McCarthy and the St Mary's number eight Mark Reilly, when it could have been anyone.
As Ciaran Fitzgerald said of referee Gordon Black: "I just think he picked two players, and the last player I wanted to lose was another number eight. I already had one on crutches on the sidelines (Frank Fitzgerald) and another one in London Irish (Victor Costello). It was very unfortunate from Mark's point of view."
An impending disciplinary hearing and rugby's inherent politeness prevented further criticism of Black, but it would be fair to say that both camps were decidedly unhappy with his performance. Black sent off the aforementioned protagonists with what seemed a theatrically arrogant wave of the hand; likewise when dismissing the justifiable queries of an increasingly frustrated St Mary's captain Brian Deane as the inconsistent and incomprehensible decisions mounted.
But there were other factors. Gradually, both back lines began to play as aggressively in defence as they had been doing in attack, and the supply lines to Hickie and his ilk were cut off at source.
At 20-20 Constitution had visions of victory, encamped as they were in the visitors' half. But St Mary's held firm, and were partially let off the hook by Ronan O'Gara's misses. Both he and, from long range, David O'Brien, hit the woodwork in missing six out of nine place kicks.
The Constitution backs outscored their St Mary's counterparts by three tries to one, yet the visitors looked the more potent. Sure enough, they went for it at the finish. Gareth Gannon and Dennis Hickie breached the initial line repeatedly. But Constitution's cover defence held out, epitomised by Brian O'Meara's tackling.
Unusually in a drawn game of so many controversies and so many missed opportunities, both camps and coaches also readily agreed that a draw was a fair enough outcome. "But having said that," added Ciaran Fitzgerald, "I thought we were very poor in the first half. We were lax, too one paced, and didn't apply any control. Our rucking was poor. There was no authority, and that's not our style. That's not the way we want to play."
His Constitution counterpart, Ray Coughlan, seemed comparatively happier: "The pleasing thing is that we showed we have a side which can compete with the top team in the league, which wouldn't have been widely expected of us even a few weeks ago."
Like Coughlan, Fitzgerald is clearly revelling in coaching a team of wannabes. "They're adventurous. I just point them which way to go. They're very easy to deal with. They just go for it."
Thus, the tag of bad travellers which St Mary's take to Limerick does not perturb him in advance of the next outing, a trip to Young Munster and, all that that entails.
