Rugby Restart All Equal
After a five week
layoff it was always going to be a difficult return to competitive
matches for the 1st XV but the end result was a 15-15 draw
against a visiting Wigtownshire team who looked to have benefited from a
match the week before. The 2nd
XV, however, banished their cobwebs quickly after an initial shaky start
against Garnock to run out convincing winners 24-5.
Wigtownshire did not look to have been affected by their long journey
from Stranraer and were into their stride quickly against a Clydebank
team who were obviously struggling to settle down after such a long
layoff. Wigtownshire were
dominating the forward exchanges in scrum and loose play and providing
their backs with plenty of possession. The Clydebank backs had maintained their ability to tackle and
kept Clydebank in the match.
After ten minutes Wigtownshire made their forward domination pay when
they went over the line in the corner for the first unconverted try to
lead 0-5. Five minutes later
further pressure led to a penalty which stretched the lead to 0-8.
Clydebank tried to come back into the game and were rewarded with a
successful conversion from Ross Moffatt two minutes later.
Clydebank were on the ropes and it looked like Wigtownshire would streak
away after only twenty minutes when their full back was let loose on the
wing after an excellent run by their second row who tied in the
Clydebank defence.
The full back looked to have a certain score when Clydebank captain
David Miller stopped him short of the line with a fine tackle. Support from Euan Cuthbert forced the Wigtownshire full back to
hold on and give away a penalty that gave Clydebank the chance to
recover.
It was a short respite for Clydebank as three minutes later the
Wigtownshire forwards had crossed the line again for their second try,
which this time was converted to stretch the lead to 3-15.
Clydebank were in a state of shock and realised they had to do something
to get back into this match. They took the play back to Wigtownshire for the remainder of the half
and added a penalty to make the score 6-15 but gave away the opportunity
of another as they took the chance for a try just before half time. Clydebank did come close to crossing the line several times in
the closing minutes but the Wigtownshire defence held strong to keep
Clydebank out and finish the half at 6-15.
The second half was a reversal of fortunes with Clydebank dominating
possession for much of the forty minutes. Ross McCombe's line kicking punished Wigtownhsire time and again
keeping them pinned inside their half and allowing Clydebank to maintain
the pressure.
Clydebank scored the only points of the half with three penalties from
Moffatt. The third penalty
was the most decisive as it came from the last move of the match. Clydebank had retained possession well throughout the half but
failed to cross the line. A
final drive up the middle of the park saw Wigtownshire lose their cool
and give away a penalty in front of their posts. The penalty was converted by Moffatt and meant that there would
be no dancing in the streets of Stranraer as Clydebank equalised on the
final whistle.
Team Photo
The 2nd XV match was to prove a more exciting affair as they took on Garnock who
were four places above them in the league. Within minutes of the kick off Garnock showed their potential
when they crossed the line for the first try of the match.
Clydebank did not lie down and proceeded to control the match. Alex Allan was first to cross the line and level the score. Next up was Colin MacLean who has returned to the game like
Lazarus following a serious illness. Colin excelled throughout the match and ghosted over the line for
the second try.
Mick Duncan completed the first half tries with a tremendous bullish run
through the Garnock defence to cross the line. Allan added the conversion to put the score at 17-5 at the half
way mark.
Garnock had the advantage of the slope in the
second half but Clydebank held strong throughout. Having absorbed the pressure for long periods Ronnie McKee was
added to the fray to dish out some revenge and his breaks up the park
like a trout up a burn dazzled and confused the Garnock defence.
The Clydebank pressure told and a run up the right wing ended
with Bryan Flannagan crossing the line for a try and Allan converting to
finish the scoring at 24-5.
Team Photo
The U17 side travelled to Paisley
after their long break and won 7-12 with tries from Andrew Mersey and
Joe O'Donnell and a conversion by Jack McCombe.The team had an excellent performance all round but the backs,
led by Captain Robert Stephenson, excelled in the tackle and loose play.
The Mini section welcomed Cumbernauld
to Whitecrook and had a great time with over sixty players taking part
across all the age groups from P1 to P7.