Mater Dei Catholic College got off to the perfect start as they looked to end their Catholic rival's unbeaten run but couldn't maintain their advantage.

Instead Kildare ran with things to take a 44-6 victory at Parramore Park on Monday.

Kildare have struggled in big games in the past two years, but captain Will McDermott was thrilled with how they overcame an early hiccup to reign supreme.

"It was a real good showing by the boys as Mater Dei came out real strong in the first half," McDermott said.

"They really gave it to us, and actually surprised us with their start but composure from the boys really got us over the line."

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Mater Dei got off to a great start as a towering spiral bomb from Fletcher Wilson bounced to their advantage and Bailey Hilton was able to swoop on the loose ball to score.

It buoyed Mater Dei but after conceding back-to-back penalties Kildare were able to level things as Campbell Tuilabeka completed a try spanning the width of the field after 12 minutes.

The following set Rick Keast Memorial Medal winner Kye Wright scored under the posts before tries to Reggie Serwaqa and Joe Morton handed the red hot favourites a 22-6 lead at half-time.

Things couldn't have started much better for Kildare in the second half as Ryan Fairall deflected a clearing kick with his head and Joe Cole swooped on the loose ball to score in the first set.

Mater Dei tried to hit back but were denied a try only to see Ethan Williams score on the next set for Kildare.

Wright then crossed for his second before Ryley Watson completed the scoring.

After a couple of disappointing campaigns, coach Matt Ward was thrilled to see the group finally rewarded with a title.

"They deserved it as they were the best team by miles, or I thought they were, and they showed it tonight," Ward said.

It was one to savour for McDermott as well.

"The last few years have been pretty disappointing but to get a win in my final year of Hardy Shield is pretty cool," he said.

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