Two-Try Boyle Impresses As Connacht Register Bonus Point Win

Paul Boyle’s first half brace of tries put Connacht on course for a 32-13 bonus point win over Zebre at a rain-hit Sportsground this evening.

The 21-year-old Academy back rower scored twice on only his second GUINNESS PRO14 start for the province, who led 17-3 at half-time with Jack Carty kicking seven points and his opposite number Carlo Canna landing a penalty.

A first competitive victory for Connacht’s new head coach Andy Friend was sealed by further tries from Caolin Blade, Eoin Griffin and Niyi Adeolokun, before Giulio Bisegni, adding to a second Canna penalty, claimed a late seven-pointer for well-beaten Zebre.

Bouncing back from last week’s narrow loss to Glasgow Warriors, Connacht were 10 points up in as many minutes. Man-of-the-match Paul Boyle burst onto captain Jarrad Butler’s hanging pass to reach over and Carty neatly converted, supplementing his earlier penalty goal.

Zebre disrupted the hosts’ lineout but Connacht were very much on top in the scrum, with 21-year-old tighthead Giosuè Zilocchi under regular pressure. The set piece platform, combined with an improved maul, paved the way for Boyle’s 20th-minute effort, the young number 8 stretching over past George Biagi and David Sisi.

After Carty converted again from the left, Zebre got their attack firing with Canna knocking over a central 25th-minute penalty. They were denied a maul opportunity by a Boyle lineout steal, while their new Tongan flanker Matu Tevi lost control of the ball on the try-line before a prior infringement by Andrea Lovotti was spotted on the TMO review.

Zebre leaked a fifth scrum penalty before the break, and although Carty’s kick curled narrowly wide, Connacht’s stranglehold of the scrum saw Zilocchi yellow carded five minutes into the second half. Hooker Oliviero Fabiani swiftly joined him in the bin for his late hit into Denis Buckley’s back.

The 13 men held back Connacht’s first surge but an advancing scrum set up Blade for a snappy finish in the right corner. Canna pulled back three points after Dave Heffernan was slow to roll away and Zilocchi and Fabiani returned with Michael Bradley’s men still in the contest.

However, right on the hour mark, Carty brilliantly dangled a kick through for centre Griffin to slide onto and score in the left corner. Australian flanker Colby Fainga’a came on to make his Connacht debut before Boyle teed up try number five from replacement Adeolokun. Finishing strongly, Zebre could have had two late tries but had to settle for one from Bisegni who dived over from replacement Guglielmo Palazzani’s threaded kick towards the posts.

Giving his reaction afterwards, Connacht boss Friend said: “I was really pleased with the platform the forwards laid, I was really pleased with the game control of our 9 and 10 again. I thought they did well. I thought defensively we were much, much better.

“We were found napping sometimes last week against Glasgow, and as a coach, I’ve got to take some responsibility for that. We talked about tempo last week. Tempo in a lot of people’s minds is about attack. We didn’t address the defensive side of it. So this week we had a massive emphasis and focus on that defence.

“We shut Zebre out in that first 20 minutes. They wanted to attack, but they weren’t allowed to because our boys worked really hard in defence. That laid the platform for us and I was really, really pleased with the way we started the second half and put them to bed there.

“There was a lot of pressure coming on Zebre at half-time, down 14 points. Probably feeling like they had to chase the game but we didn’t move an inch with that. So then they try and push a little bit more. Then you get a rush of blood and you get a yellow card, and then another one, and that’s what happens in footy.

“That was our big message at half-time – if we are disciplined, if we control our discipline and our tempo and the ball, and we’ve got it and keep bouncing, keep working hard, then they’ve got to chase, they’ve go to do something. And what do they do? They gave away those penalties and the yellow cards came.”