Belvedere’s reward for completing the last four of the Bank of Ireland Leinster Schools Junior Cup at Donnybrook on Sunday will be a shot at champions Blackrock.

They went about their business well from the outset, but were thwarted by the combination of the Newbridge defence and their sub-standard handling.
 
The starting points are possession and territory and Belvo’ were dominate in these areas to ask all the questions to which there were answers particularly in out-half Sam Cahill’s dispatch to touch.
 
This would not be near enough to make a game of it until Newbridge made their opponents think about tackling.
 
A counter from centre Daniel O’Connor claimed a penalty. It was sent to touch where a clean lineout was trucked up by captain Rob Scully.
 
O’Connor had the gas to get around the outside where it took a brilliant tackle by full-back Rory Dwyer to prevent a try.      
 
Belvedere out-half John Meagher cleverly worked Cailean Mulvaney onto the ball, but the centre ran away from his support.
 
The game was beginning to open up, Newbridge wing David Higgins making a great read to stop the next attack. 
 
The accurate long passing of The Bridge backs looked to have put Ethan Lyons through a hole only for referee Gary Glennon to stop play to caution Mulvaney for a tackle.
 
It took another smart intervention from Higgins to prevent centre Adam Feely from finding the overlapping Cian Rogers as the Northsiders got closer to their goal.
 
Then, Newbridge’s O’Connor was about as lucky as you can get for just seeing yellow for a severe tip tackle.
 
The Belvo’ pack was stung into action, almost taking a maul home before Scully somehow got his mits on the next 5-metre throw.       
 
The breakthrough finally came from a scrum, the ball nicely spread right for wing Rogers to take advantage of their extra man to find the line in the 24th minute. 
 
There followed a sickening double blow when number eight Aaron Coleman and Mulvaney made the dents that enabled fly-half John Meagher to wheel around behind the posts for Mulvaney to make it 12-0 in the 26th minute. 
 
The impressive Scully was in on the ball again to force a knock-on.
 
Centre Daniel Caulfield lost control of the ball just as he cracked the cover in what would have been a timely boost for the Kildare boys.
 
The second period started with a wonderful catch, break and offload by Newbridge lock Fionnan Morrin, the ball getting away from flanker Mark Moynihan.   
 
This was not a sign of things to come as Belvedere took hold of the ball to come close on the left and down the right.  
 
The maul did the trick for lock Adam Maher to ground the third try in the 35th minute. 
 
This was immediately met with a positive response for scrum-half Jack Doyle to shoot a penalty. 
 
There was real juice in the Newbridge legs now. Flanker Mark Moynihan and lock Oisin Halpin combined to create danger. They just couldn’t hang onto the ball and Belvedere broke upfield for Meagher’s kick to take play deep inside the 22.
 
Belvedere pressured the lineout and eased the ball right for Rogers to fly into the corner and Mulvaney stayed wide for the fifth in the 54th minute.
 
Newbridge kept on playing and Doyle’s second attempt at a crossfield kick from deep inside his 22 worked out when Higgins grabbed it and took off for and 80-metre try converted by Doyle.    
 
At Donnybrook – Belvedere College 27 (C Rogers 2 tries; C Mulvaney try, con; J Meagher, A Maher try each); Newbridge College 10 (D Higgins try; J Doyle pen, con).
 
Belvedere: Rory Dwyer; Cian Rogers, Adam Feely, Cailean Mulvaney, Rory Doran; John Meagher (capt), Patrick Lysaght; Conor Cagney, Andrew Synnott, James O’Sullivan, Adam Maher, Alekseiy Soroka, Donnacha Donnelly, Cian Maher, Aaron Coleman.
 
Replacements: Mateusz Galinski for Cagney ht; Matthew Grogan for Doran 46 mins; Cian Fitzgerald for Soroka 49 mins; Brian O’Leary for Maher 52 mins; Jordan Cahill for O’Sullivan, Cillian Cosgrave for Lysaght both 58 mins.
 
Newbridge: Ethan Lyons; Ro Burns, Daniel O’Connor, Daniel Caulfield, David Higgins; Sam Cahill, Jack Doyle; Zachary O’Reilly, Bill Kavanagh, Jack Ryan, Oisin Halpin, Fionnan Morrin, Mark Moynihan, Muiris Cleary, Rob Scully (capt).
 
Replacements: John Shanahan for Lyons, Conor McGroary for Ryan both 35 mins; Thomas Sheedy for Morrin 41 mins; Marcus Kiely for Cahill 49 mins; Cormac Stopes for Kavanagh, Paddy O’Flaherty for Cleary, Jordan Nolan for Caulfield all 55 mins.
 
Referee: Gary Glennon, Leinster Branch.