Oct
05
Meggetland men secure bonus point victory against top of the league rivals
Match report by Morgane Jarles
It was a very entertaining game this Saturday at Meggetland, with Boroughmuir defeating Watsonians at the last minute, beating the Myreside men 32-25.
The game started really well for Muir who gained a penalty almost immediately. It was successfully kicked between the posts by David Reekie (3-0). Boroughmuir had possession of the ball, and was very close to scoring after Jordan Edmunds made considerable ground on his left wing, but the game had to be stopped for the Italian referee Emanuele Tomo to send off the Watsonians centre Scott McKean.
David Reekie then broke through the visitors’ defence and touched down, but missed the conversion (8-0). Watsonians briefly regained possession, but the Muir defence was outstanding, and regained the ball after a knock on. This was followed by a fine line break by Alex Cox on the left.
Robbie Wilson then took the ball in, and Sam Johnson scored Boroughmuir’s second unconverted try thanks to an excellent pick up at the ruck (13-0). Watsonians then held on to the ball, and gained a penalty in a ruck, successfully kicked by Mike Ker (13-3).
The Myreside men started to wake up and make good ground. Even though Muir’s defence was tight, Mark Rennie forced his way through and scored the visitors’ first try on the left. Mike Ker added the extras (13-10). In what became a contested game, the Watsonians turned to be more present in attack, putting a lot of pressure on the Muir defence.
They displayed great execution and were close to scoring but Boroughmuir held on. Unfortunately, Joni Hare was yellow carded for a fault in a ruck just before half-time (HT 13-10).
Even though Muir was one man short, they reacted really well after the restart, scoring 2 tries successively. Trent Sutton, who made his debut for the 1st XV, benefited from a turnover and burst through.
He offloaded to Malcolm Clapperton for the touchdown. David Reekie added the extra points (20-10). Craig Marshall scored an unconverted try 2 minutes later (25-10). The Watsonians replied with a try by Ramsay Young, converted by Mike Ker (25-17). The game was then very contested throughout the rest of the second half. There were fine passages of play on both sides.
The visitors threatened the home defence more than once, but Muir willingly held on. After a line break by Clarke Smith, there was a turnover for Boroughmuir, who sent Watsonians back to their own half, but Greig Scott got a yellow card. The Watsonians regained possession at a scrum, and Scott McKean found a gap in the defence and scored an unconverted try (25-22). The visitors kept attacking the line, and gained a penalty in front of the posts which was successfully kicked by Mike Ker (25-25).
With only 3 minutes left, it was really tense, but Muir kept control. Stevie Wilson scored the winning try on the final whistle, and Reekie added the extras (full time 32-25).
In addition to winning the McNish trophy, Boroughmuir now comfortably sits at the top of the league table, 7 points ahead of Watsonians.
“It was a pretty tough game; they played a lot of rugby. Mistakes cost us a bit, but the boys dug really deep and held on for the win. This shows the character of the squad and what we can achieve” David Reekie commented after the game.
Stevie Wilson added “It was hard coming off the bench but I believe I made a difference. Looking forward to next week!”
“It was a really entertaining game; we are disappointed we made so many mistakes. Credit to Muir for the victory” former international Jason White said.
At Meggetland, Saturday 5th October 2013, KO 3pm
Referee: Emanuele Tomo (Italian federation)
Assistant referees: Digby Thomas, Bob Nevins
Score evolution: 3-0, 8-0, 13-0, 13-3, 13-10 (HT), 20-10, 25-10, 25-17, 25-22, 25-25, 32-25.
Boroughmuir: 5 tries (Reekie 7’, Johnson 17’, Clapperton 43’, Marshall 45’, Wilson 80’), 2 conversions (Reekie 43’ & 80’), 1 penalty (Reekie 1’).
Watsonians: 3 tries (Rennie 31’, Young 51’, McKean 71’), 2 conversions (Ker 31’ & 51’), 2 penalties (Ker 22’ & 77’).
Yellow cards: Watsonians: McKean 6’; Boroughmuir: Hare 38’, Scott 70’.
Boroughmuir: 15.Craig Marshall, 14. Robert Cairns, 13.Alex Cox, 12. Malcolm Clapperton, 11.Jordan Edmunds, 10. David Reekie, 09.Sam Johnson; 01. Robbie Wilson, 02. Cal Davies, 03.Jonny Latta, 04. Greig Scott, 05. Trent Sutton, 06. Joni Hare, 08. Andrew Rose (capt.), 07. Neil Rodger. Subs: 16.Callun Taylor, 17.Angus Wallace, 18.Thomas Docherty, 19.Murray Johnstone, 20. Stevie Wilson.
Watsonians: 15.Rory Steele, 14.Ramsay Young, 13. Scott McKean, 12.Ross Aitken, 11.Jack Ferguson, 10. Mike Ker, 09. Matt Page; 01. Martin Christie, 02.Matthew Brierley, 03. Danny Moussa, 04. Mark Rennie, 05. Matthew Poole, 06. Neil Irvine-Hess, 07. Ewan Miller, 08.Niall Dennis. Subs: 16. Alex Ross, 17. James Forrester, 18. Clarke Smith, 19.Ben Di Rollo; 20.Tom Hart.
Boroughmuir Rugby man of the match: Andy Rose
Watsonians man of the match: Danny Moussa
