Kilkenny RFC 20
Ashbourne RFC 18
They had to work for it, but Kilkenny got an opening day victory in the Leinster League in Foulkstown on Saturday afternoon as they narrowly edged out a gallant Ashbourne side.
An early try off the back of a maul from Damien Leahy was the most they had to offer in a flat first half as the home team went into the interval trailing 8-18.
They changed their approach in the second half as tries from Wes Carter and Ioan Lewis brought Kilkenny level following a strong spell.
A successful conversion from Hugh Corkery gave them a two-point advantage that they did not relinquish as they saw out the rest of the game to claim the points.
