Safe passage for Athlone

Athlone Town had to wait until the second half of this match at St Mel's Park before earning any tangible reward for their superior…

Athlone Town had to wait until the second half of this match at St Mel's Park before earning any tangible reward for their superior possession.

As it transpired, it was a stroke of good fortune for the home side which broke the deadlock four minutes after the interval, when the unlucky Corinthians defender Damien Martin turned the ball into his own net following a Paddy Lee cross.

A Liam Buckley headed goal put the tie beyond Corinthians 10 minutes later, with Adrian Carberry hitting the third in injury time.

Athlone Town: Connaughton, Lally (Brady 90), Colsh, Rodgers, Silke, Fortune, McLoughlin, Buckley (Collins 78), Lee (Mullan 75), Kelly, Carberry.

College Corinthians: Bevan, Healy, Ring, Moloney, Martin, Aherne, Bird, Cronin, Morley, Hogan, O'Connor.

Referee: T Traynor (Dublin).

  • Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date

  • What’s making headlines in the rugby world? Listen to The Counter Ruck podcast with Nathan Johns

  • Sign up for push alerts to get the best breaking news, analysis and comment delivered to your phone