Battling Stags fall short in epic tussle with solid 'Shire
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UNBEATEN Aberdeenshire 2nds left Invergordon with a bonus point win on Saturday as Ross Sutherland failed to halt their league supremacy.
The five points to 29 points defeat doesn’t reflect the closeness of the game or the huge effort the Stags put into the game. Indeed it was the hosts who started brightest with several attacks in the opening minutes, but they were unable to penetrate the ‘Shire defence.
With slippery conditions underfoot, and a ball to match, it was a game for the forwards and the first half descended into a war of attrition. ‘Shire started to push back into Ross territory with their big pack working well as a unit, and as the half closed they broke the deadlock with a try that just made it over the whitewash.
Within 15 minutes of the restart the ‘Shire pack were really getting the upper hand and they scored twice from driving mauls, and by the time 70 minutes were on the clock they scored another two from the back of scrums.
The last ten minutes were all about Ross Sutherland as they laid siege to the ‘Shire line as they looked for a way back into the game. The referee saw fit to issue two yellow cards in quick succession to the visitors as their repeated infringements took the momentum out of the Ross attack. In the last play of the game Lewis Sinclair showed great determination when he finally broke the ‘Shire line to score his 5th try in as many games.
This weekend Stornoway are the visitors to Invergordon, with an early KO expected.
On Sunday the Ross Sutherland S1/2 side continued their recent excellent form with a ten try victory over Moray. That makes five wins in a row for John Scott’s lads.
This Saturday the U18s are back in league action with a trip to Aberdeen Wanderers and the U15s make the long journey to Falkirk for their Caledonia Plate Quarter Final tie.
