Sacred Heart Clonakilty 36
St Annes CC Killaloe 12
THE morning after he had coached Sacred Heart to a Munster Schools senior and junior cup double, Jack Phelan was back walking the corridors of the Clonakilty school.
‘Everyone was buzzing,’ he says, ‘there was great positivity, just a great feeling.’
In one sense it was back to reality for the Sacred Heart teacher, but the feel-good effect from the school’s delightful double at Virgin Media Park the day before lingered in the air.
‘It really is putting rugby on the map in West Cork, because success like this gets peoples’ attention and always encourages new players to try it out as well,’ says the Clonmel man, who is in his first year teaching in the Clonakilty secondary school.
Sacred Heart Clonakilty's Jo McCaughey in action.
He had followed Sacred Heart’s history-making Munster senior and junior cup double in 2024, so when Phelan moved to Clonakilty he was excited to work with this group of players. Together, they have rubber-stamped their dominance of schools’ girls’ rugby in Munster.
After the success of the junior team in their cup final against Coláiste Pobail Bheanntraí, Phelan quickly turned his focus to the senior cup decider against St Annes Community College Killaloe – this was a clash between the reigning champs (Sacred Heart) and the 2023 winners (St Annes).
Sacred Heart did have the advantage of a 34-7 semi-final win against Coláiste Muire Ennis under their belts, while St Annes received a walk-over in their semi-final, so perhaps were slightly under-cooked. Still, the Clonakilty team had to cope with the expectation and pressure that comes with wearing the crown.
‘There has been great media coverage and a lot of talk about this, which has been super because we want to drive on women’s rugby. I am passionate about this, as are the players, and the staff and management in the school. For us, it was about acknowledging that the pressure was there but tuning it out and focussing on what we can do which is to play rugby. I felt we did our talking on the pitch,’ Phelan explains – and Sacred Heart did just that.
Within 15 minutes, the West Cork school had surged into a 19-0 lead, and were in total control. Emer Moroney, and sisters Ella O’Sullivan and Sara O’Sullivan all scored tries in this period, with Rachel Twomey kicking two conversions.
St Annes hit back with an unconverted try from Charlie Dillon in the 22nd minute but speedster Ella O’Sullivan, a fifth-year Clon student, scored two more tries before the break – to complete a memorable hat-trick – as Sacred Heart roared into a 29-5 lead.
Ella’s sister Sara is one of the team’s sixth year students, along with Emily Moloney, Caoimhe McCarthy, Alannah Ní Dhonnabhain and Amy Giles. They will leave Sacred Heart this summer with their school as the best schools’ girls’ rugby team in Munster. Their work is done, and legacy secured.
Sacred Heart'S Ella O'Sullivan scores a try in the Pinergy Munster Rugby Schools Girls Senior Cup final.
‘For the sixth years who are leaving, they wanted to rubber-stamp the school’s name in rugby circles and they’ve done that – they showed this is a serious school for rugby,’ Phelan says.
‘Ella O’Sullivan, our winger, scored three tries which is phenomenal for her, and her sister got on the score-sheet too; she is a sixth year. Caoimhe McCarthy also scored, and she is another sixth year.
‘It’s a great send-off for them and they’ll never forget a day like this.’
On Sacred Heart’s hat-trick hero, Phelan adds: ‘Ella is so humble, she'd play it down, but it’s a great achievement. While she finished them off, it’s the team who set them up, so this was a team effort.’
In the second half St Annes narrowed the gap after a converted try from scrum half Grace Dillion, but the champions had the last say when Clodagh McCarthy scored a late try, converted by Rachel Twomey.
Led by captain Kate Burton, one of the Sacred Heart players also involved in the school’s 2024 senior cup final, the Clonakilty school are champions of Munster, again.
This is a community success story, given the huge role Clonakilty Rugby Club has played in this double-double.
Sacred Heart's Leona Arra celebrates with a fan after the game.
‘The club is phenomenal, they have been incredible all the way, have supported us so much, and we can’t thank them enough,’ adds Phelan, who has been blown away by the strength and growth of rugby in Clon since he made the move to the new home of girls’ schools’ rugby in Munster.
‘I can’t thank the people of Clonakilty enough. It felt like the whole of Clon was there to support us for both finals. At times in both matches we were under pressure but our supporters lifted us and drove us on.
‘Clonakilty’s reputation is growing in rugby, and you can see why – boys and girls’ club teams are doing great things and now we have Sacred Heart winning another double, and we saw Clonakilty Community College qualify for the boys’ Munster Junior Cup quarter-finals for the first time as well. It’s great to see rugby thriving locally.’
He adds: ‘I hope this is the continuation of great things to come for the school, and I’m confident it is.’
Sacred Heart Clonakilty: Maria O’Donovan; Alannah Ní Dhonnabhain, Clodagh McCarthy, Jo McCaughey, Ella O’Sullivan; Rachel Twomey, Julie Finn; Meghan Coakley, Ciara O’Driscoll, Sara O’Sullivan; Leona Arra, Emer Moroney; Amy Giles, Kate Burton (captain), Roxanne Llewelyn.
Replacements: Emily Moloney, Saoirse O’Sullivan, Maya McMahon, Niamh Hilliard, Charlotte McCabe, Caoimhe McCarthy, Elva McAuley, Laura Sexton, Chloe Galwey, Aideen O’Sullivan.
St Annes CC: Aoife Coleman; Lucy Pearl, Evie Hass, Mia Hennelly (co-captain), Emer Gilmartin; Charlie Dillon, Grace Dillon; Emily Darcy, Jessica Duggan, Amy Lynch; Muireann Houlihan, Louise Fahy; Clodagh Ryan, Aoibhe Slevin, Tuathla Ryan (co-captain).
Replacements: Hannah O’Shaughnessy, Ellie Hennelly, Meg Mulcahy, Isobel Quinn.
