Heineken Munster Junior Cup Final

Cork Constitution v UCC

Friday 25th April 2008

Musgrave Park, kick off 7.30pm

In every round there have been games full of great intensity, going down to the wire and in the final showdown, Cork rivals Constitution and UCC will face off to see who will claim the silverware this season when they meet in the Final next Friday night at Musgrave Park at 7.30.  Both sides have certainly been tested on their way to this stage and it should provide for a compelling showpiece to a fantastic season.

There is always great intrigue at the start of this competition, as the Senior and Junior clubs mix together, and with the competitive nature of both leagues it was always going to be a very open competition.

The stand out game of the early rounds was probably a refixture of last seasons Final as Garryowen took on UL Bohs.  The Light Blues won the decider last year but couldnt repeat their feat as Bohs won out.  The Limerick side didnt last much longer as they came up against a fired up Cork Con team.

The Temple Hill side didnt have the best League campaign and were outsiders for this game, but they have a great love affair with this competition and it continued as they deservedly claimed the win.  Following this result, they were always going to have a major say but did face further stiff tests, narrowly overcoming the challenge of Clonmel before overpowering a weary Cashel side, who had just finished their AIL Round Robin campaign.

One of the results of the earlier rounds was Killorglins surprise victory at Kinsale, as the Kerry side made a welcome return to the Junior scene.

Another Kerry team; Tralee had a good run and also caused a shock as they won at an in-form Skibbereen.  Tralee knocked Killorglin out before bowing out at the Quarter Final stage to Shannon.

Carrick-on-Suir almost caused a major upset against a strong Dolphin side who were eventually defeated by Kanturk.

UCC showed their class early on as they ran up some high scores with their stamina showing at Fitzgerald Park as they pulled away in the closing stages.  They were lucky to come out on top against Kilfeacle in a very even game, with the students pack severely tested.

In the semi-finals, Shannon were awaiting and UCC were deservedly victorious to claim their place in the Final.

The players on these sides should know each other very well and there should be very little to choose between the sides.  The clubs met in the decider just three years ago with Con winning out rather easily but it should be a much tighter affair this time around.