Energia Bateman Cup: Recent Finals
This season’s Energia Bateman Cup final takes place at Lakelands Park on Saturday (kick-off 2.30pm), with live coverage of the game between holders Terenure College and Young Munster on the Irish Rugby TV YouTube channel.
The all-Division 1A decider is a repeat of the 2022 semi-final which Terenure won 21-11, while the Cookies won 13-6 when the teams met in the league at Tom Clifford Park in November.
Check out the recaps and best of the action from the recent Bateman Cup finals below, including highlights of ‘Nure’s historic first title win last season:
2023: TERENURE COLLEGE 71 BUCCANEERS 13, Lakelands Park
Terenure College were crowned Energia Bateman Cup champions for the first time, doing it in clinical fashion with a 71-13 final win over an understrength Buccaneers team at Lakelands Park.
Full-back Adam La Grue ran in a hat-trick on a night that Terenure racked up 11 tries, with Buccaneers’ only consolation a 69th-minute converted effort from replacement Robert Teape.
It took a sterling effort from numerous players and volunteers to clear snow from the pitch and ensure the game went ahead. Terenure quickly hit top gear on the all-weather surface to score five tries inside 28 minutes.
La Grue touched down twice and Craig Adams, Alan Bennie and Niall Lalor also chipped in with scores, Buccaneers getting off the mark through Michael Hanley and Stephen Mannion penalties but trailing 31-6 at the break.
Missing their Connacht Academy contingent and some other key players, a battling Buccs deservedly got over the whitewash but ‘Nure were in no mood to pull up early.
Sean Skehan’s charges secured the club’s first senior national title since 2014’s Division 1B win with further scores from Adams, Sam Coghlan Murray, captain Harrison Brewer, Lalor, La Grue and Conor McCormack.
2022: LANSDOWNE 46 YOUNG MUNSTER 13, Musgrave Park
Ruthless Lansdowne racked up seven tries against Young Munster to emerge as 46-13 winners of a one-sided Energia Bateman Cup final in Cork.
Having fallen behind to two Evan Cusack penalties at a windy Musgrave Park, influential half-backs Peter Hastie and Cormac Foley inspired a stunning attacking performance from Mark McHugh’s men.
Lansdowne’s backs hogged all seven tries, including a second half hat-trick from Sean Galvin, as they romped to the club’s seventh Bateman Cup crown – a sixth outright and they shared the 2020 title with Cork Constitution.
Seeking their first Bateman Cup since 1928, wind-backed Young Munster built an early 6-0 lead only for a Foley-inspired Lansdowne to hit back with two well-taken tries.
Michael Silvester and Andy Marks both crossed to the right of the posts, making it 12-6 at half-time, and a Galvin try early in the second half widened the margin to 11 points.
Wearing red jerseys to avoid a colour clash, there was no stopping Lansdowne as they cut a tiring Cookies defence open for further scores from Paul Kiernan, Galvin (2) and Hastie, who finished with 12 points.
Young Munster gave their large travelling support something to cheer about late on, evergreen replacement prop Paul Allen enjoying a fine break to set up Conor Phillips for a last-minute consolation try.
2019: CITY OF ARMAGH 21 GARRYOWEN 45, Templeville Road
Garryowen got their hands on the Bateman Cup for the first time since 2012, as brothers Neil and Liam Cronin combined for three tries in their 45-21 win over first-time finalists City of Armagh at Templeville Road.
Division 1B club Armagh gave a very good account of themselves, trailing 14-7 at one stage and scoring final quarter tries through replacement Andrew Willis and Shea O’Brien.
However, the six-try Light Blues were in sizzling form, the Cronins scoring the final three tries after first half efforts from young backs Bryan Fitzgerald, Peadar Collins and Jamie Heuston.
Grand Slam-winning Ireland Under-20 out-half Ben Healy kicked 13 points in an assured display, nine of them helping Garryowen to lead 24-7 at the break.
Yellow cards for Neil Faloon and Peter Starrett had Armagh down to 13 men on the hour mark, but they battled on and responded in kind to their superb band of passionate supporters who sung their hearts out.
2018: CORK CONSTITUTION 12 LANSDOWNE 32, Temple Hill
Three tries in the third quarter propelled Lansdowne to a long-awaited Bateman Cup title – the club’s first since 1931 – as they defeated defending champions Cork Constitution 32-12 at Temple Hill.
Seeking their sixth Bateman Cup success in-a-row, Cork Con’s dominance of the historic All-Ireland competition came to an end in sun-splashed Leeside, as Mike Ruddock’s men completed the first leg of a potential league and cup double.
Scott Deasy, Lansdowne’s man-of-the-match and a former Constitution favourite, closed out the first half of this keenly-contested final with a penalty which gave the Dubliners an 8-5 lead at the break, the sides trading well-taken tries from Liam O’Connell (19 minutes) and Alan Bennie (28).
The headquarters club tellingly strung together three unanswered tries up to the hour mark, second row Josh O’Rourke muscling over, Adam Leavy scoring from a favourable bounce and then centre Mark O’Keeffe ran in an intercept score that had Con 20 points behind.
Brian Hickey’s charges rallied with a 70th-minute converted try from Munster lock Darren O’Shea who was sprung from the bench, but fleet-footed winger Leavy turned provider to send Corkman Eamonn Mills over for Lansdowne’s fifth try and the icing on the cake.
2017: OLD BELVEDERE 13 CORK CONSTITUTION 18, Anglesea Road
Cork Constitution survived a frantic finish to edge out hosts Old Belvedere 18-13 at Anglesea Road and win their fifth Bateman Cup in-a-row.
Brian Hickey’s men did all their scoring in the first half, with tries from Liam O’Connell and man-of-the-match Brian Hayes establishing an 18-10 interval lead.
They had just enough in reserve to hold off a determined comeback from Old Belvedere who were relegated from Division 1A three weeks ago.
It was the first leg of a potential All-Ireland double for Constitution who return to the capital next Sunday for a mouth-watering league decider against reigning champions Clontarf, while they are now the Bateman Cup’s most decorated club, surpassing Lansdowne’s quartet of titles between 1922 and 1931.