Perthshire 51 – 22 Ross High

Despite the dark & wet, ‘Shire shine with 8 try victory.

The frost had thawed but the weather was wet. Not appealing conditions for the players nor the few hardy souls who came to watch. However, these spectators were rewarded with the best performance of the season from Perthshire.

In did not start too well for the Eagles, running back the kick-off Kieran Ramsay, on his return from injury, made good inroads but the tackle that brought him down also broke his nose and he was off within a minute. Cameron Craig entering the match much earlier than anticipated.

This did not deter ‘Shire who looked eager and dangerous with ball in hand. After a couple of phases Rory Bayne found the gap to go through. Chipping the ball on, it was a foot race which the covering fullback just won to save a try. Ross High cleared but it this was only a temporary reprieve.

Big hits in defence, led by Dan Rae forced a turnover. At the scrum ‘Shire exploited holes in the defence to push forward. The visitors slowed it down illegally, penalised by the referee, Lewis Murrie took it quickly and made a 40m dash before he was caught and offloaded to Dan Rae who carried & shipped it to Angus Walker. He was just denied, but recycling the ball a short pick & pass gave Ben Marshall the momentum to stretch over for an unconverted try.

Ross High now took the ball on but to no avail through the ‘Shire defence. A turnover by James Mair ending their attack. However they soon returned, ratcheting up the pressure and some hard direct carries by the men from Tranent worked into the ‘Shire 22. They were rewarded with a penalty in front of the posts which they converted, 5-3.

At the restart Cameron Craig took a nasty twist to end his match hobbling off with a knee injury so Dan Rae moved to the forwards with AJ Guthrie coming in to the centre. The match restarted with a scrum, seizing a massive blindside, Lewis Murrie took the ball and sprinted past the halfway line to before offloading to Thomas Pounder who went deep into the 22 before being brought down. The support was there and few carries worked the ball infield before getting sent out to Ross Goodison who used his footwork to better the defender, then with a burst of pace crossed the try line. Calum Bruce adding the extras from in front of the posts.

The momentum swung back to Ross High who after a series of short carries worked up the pitch to the try line before ‘Shire pinched the ball. The referee judged this illegal and awarded Ross High a penalty; they tapped and went one way then back towards the touchline, the last man crossing the whitewash in the corner for an unconverted try, 12-8.

With such poor conditions and a heavier pack Ross High tried to use the high ball to put ‘Shire under pressure. They had not counted on fullback Rory Bayne who repeatedly took possession in acres of space and then picked his line to run it back with interest throughout the match.

Perthshire’s third try came from this set-up, as Rory Bayne caught then ran back the ball before offloading to John Kelly, who tried to grubber through. Ross High secured the ball only to kick it back into Rory Bayne’s arms again, and this time he did all the work to run round and through 5 defenders on his way to the line. It was a tough angle from out wide, but Calum Bruce struck it well to convert, 19-8.

Ross High missed a shot at goal after a high tackle and tempers began to fray in the forwards. This added a bit of mettle to ‘Shire who channelled the aggression as exemplified by a Lewis Murrie tackle on his opposite scrum half at the back of a scrum, the ‘Shire forwards surging over to win the penalty.

Now in the opposition half ‘Shire were trying too hard in the conditions and lost the ball, Ross High kicked it away, but Rory Bayne was waiting and ran it right back again. Having sucked the defence in there was a space in the midfield and at first receiver Ben Marshall tipped on to Club Captain Rhys Darlington who suddenly found clear grass in front of him. The prop ran, and kept running right into the 22, before finally getting caught. A cross field kick attempt missed but returning for the penalty the pack took charge, within 2 phases of taking it short, James Mair scored in the corner.

The conversion was missed but almost immediately from the restart Angus Walker jackaled to win a penalty and Calum Bruce was on target. The referee called half-time with ‘Shire ahead 27-8.

The second half started with a bang. Combining in defence Tom Colvin followed by Simon McGarry forced a knock-on and ‘Shire scooped up the ball. From the middle a wide pass went out to Rory Bayne who seared into the 22, drawing all the defenders to him before releasing John Kelly who injected more pace to blitz down the touchline before running in between the sticks. Calum Bruce converted, 34-8.

Minutes later Rory Bayne again broke free and was stopped 5m out. The ball went to the right then was whipped out to the left, the passing not quite crisp enough stalling the pace so Simon McGarry was just denied in the corner and ‘Shire were then penalised at the ruck. Ross High missed touch and rued it as Tom Colvin was on the end of a flowing move with multiple offloads to score a try under the posts, 41-8.

The game turned on its head for the next 20 minutes. Gone was the attack and flair that started the half. It was turgid, brutal forward plays or direct runs and all Ross High. Try as they might the Eagles could not get out of their own half. The penalty count crept up but the resolve did not, demonstrated by solid tackles from Ben Marshall and Laurence Knight, then Simon McGarry stripping the ball to save a try over the line.

The visitors came back again, even with the fresh legs of Kieran Maclean and Aedan Milne on for Thomas Pounder and Angus Walker, the siege was not lifted. Eventually Ross High bludgeoned their way over after some hard runs getting the better of a softened Back & White line, 41-15.

More needless penalties, compounded the pressure, Perthshire fortunate the referee’s patience was saintly as it must have been close to a yellow card such was the penalty count.

Ross High looked good to score having worked an overlap but a forward pass saved ‘Shire. From the scrum deep in the 22, AJ Guthrie dummied and found a gap, he was stopped but, quickly recycled, the ball went out wide to Rory Bayne who jinked his way in behind Ross High, before offloading to Aedan Milne. With 60m to go and not much space the winger showed all his pace, poise & power to outfox the defenders and cover the whole distance to score in the corner, a stunning try!

Minutes later a scrum on the left touchline at halfway was set, the ball came cleanly out to the back line who running different lines confounded Ross High who could not live with Aedan Milne as he crossed again, though this time not from as far out. Calum Bruce just missed the conversion, 51-15.

The game ended 2 minutes later after Ross High scored their third try following a quick tap taking advantage of an disorganised and tired ‘Shire defence.

Plenty of positives for ‘Shire to build on, at times things just worked and the rugby looked good. A solid shift from the forwards allowed the space and time for the backline, superbly marshalled by halfbacks Lewis Murrie & Calum Bruce, to show their quality. Head Coach Smudge will have some selection conundrums with all players putting in a shift. The final game of 2023, will see Perthshire travel to Newton Mearns to face Whitecraigs and aim put right the 5 point loss when the sides met at the North Inch earlier on this season.

Meanwhile the Eagles lost 0-52 to the league leaders Crieff. A tough game where the players never really felt they got going. However, on the positive side there were Perthshire debuts for David Wakefield, Kieran Cruden and Jim Leishman; and brothers Jonny and Andrew Venter made their first senior rugby starts. Special mention must also go to Mark Morgan, who put in a Man-of-the-Match performance in his first game since collecting his bus pass! The Eagles will keep training over winter to be prepared for the next fixture on 13th January.

Photographs taken by Peter Wilkinson.

Stewartry 52 – 8 Perthshire

Atrocious conditions and disorganisation hurt ‘Shire.

Perthshire made their longest trip of the season down to deepest Kirkcudbrightshire to face Stewartry. In stark contrast to the warm September afternoon when they met on the North Inch, the conditions were very wet, windy and not amenable to free flowing rugby.

The Eagles started brightly gaining a penalty of the first play, but failed to capitalise as the wet slippery ball was lost, the opportunity from Angus Walker’s strong carry & offload squandered.

Defending ‘Shire were guilty of going high and allowed Stewartry to kick their penalty downfield. Within a few phases the outside centre made a break and went untouched as he covered the distance to score a converted try.

Perthshire struck back immediately through the boot of Calum Bruce, kicking over a penalty won by Angus Walker at the breakdown, 7-3.

However, ‘Shire did not settle and in the poor conditions dropped the ball allowing Stewartry right back into their half. Soon the home team used a scrum under the posts to set the attack, and within a few carries were over for their second try, 14-3.

The men in Black & White became disjointed, nothing was working for them in attack and the defence softened. Only a solid effort from Laurence Knight stopped a certain try as he defended a 3-on-1.

It alone was not enough, mistakes compounded by penalties allowed the Castle Douglas team 2 more tries, one covering 50m in a single move, 28-3.

‘Shire were now up against it and the referee’s patience with the high tackles was wearing thin as he issued a warning to the players. Sensing the disorganised defence, Stewartry were over again in the corner, unconverted 33-3. Which is how it remained until halftime.

It was more of the same as the match resumed, Stewartry only needed a few minutes to work the blindside effectively, get in behind and run in under posts to extend their lead, 40-3.

The momentum swung as Perthshire gained a sustained period of possession, but were unable to penetrate, Stewartry equal to the task in defence.

The breakthrough came as Rabson Chipakupaku caught a clearance kick on his wing but seeing the space ran cross field to the other side, rounded most of the defenders sucking in the last man before releasing fellow winger Thomas Pounder, who finished the move in the corner. The wind just keeping out Calum Bruce’s conversion attempt, 40-8.

Now it was the host’s turn to exert pressure. It was not pretty but ‘Shire held on, Dan Rae making big hits to raise his team and James Mair with a crucial turnover on the try line to break the siege.

Minutes later a promising break from AJ Guthrie came to nothing as the support was too slow and a following ruck easily turned over.

Stewartry assaulted the ‘Shire line again, this time Cameron Craig the key man to relieve the pressure. The match then got stuck in no-man’s land. Tiredness and the conditions preventing either team from building a platform.

Eventually, Stewartry wrestled possession in their favour and playing tight, a series of short picks from the ruck base worked them up the pitch, then a tap penalty earned them a score under the posts. There was time for one more score by the home team, again short power plays the main weapon of choice and it ended, 52-8.

This was a real disappointment for Perthshire, while there were some individual bright spots, as a team the performance was lacking in many quarters. Defence was a key weakness with high tackles and soft shoulders gifting Stewartry possession, position and ultimately the points to run away with it.

The injury list grew with knocks to Ross Goodison, Laurence Knight and John Kelly likely to rule them out for a few matches. The next week of training will be crucial ahead of the rescheduled derby match away to Strathmore at Inchmacoble Park.

The Eagles will also travel to Strathmore next weekend making it a double header. They will be looking to build on recent form and see if they can get a deserved win on the road. It was close but not to be in Bo’ness, where a try from Man-of-the-Match Ross Alexander and 30m penalty by James Whyte were not enough as injuries took their toll. The numerical advantage Bo’ness had to bring players off the bench gave them the edge as they won 15-8 in a match shortened by the casualty list.

1XV photos taken by Catriona Imrie.

Perthshire 27 – 30 North Berwick

‘Shire haul themselves into lead but stumble in the dying minutes.

Last week’s chastening defeat on the road hurt and the squad trained well and in good numbers for their return to the North Inch after weeks of flooding & waterlogging. The 1XV pitch still under water the Town pitch, repaired & lined by Niall Menzies at short notice, hosted what was a match of wild swings in performance and momentum.

Wet underfoot but with a clear sky Perthshire received the kick off. A few probing runs failed to make much ground before the ball was thrown away and North Berwick scooped it up. Now their turn to probe Perthshire, they too made minimal ground with consistent carries matched by the defence. However, ‘Shire erred and with a penalty advantage North Berwick played a bit wider, found a gap and burst through into the 22 and over the line for a converted try, 0-7.

Perthshire now took on the attack. A scrum in the 22 and No. 8 pick up edged closer; then a quick tap penalty moved further forward, before passing out to other wing where Dan Rae was stopped just short. A forward pass first then holding up a lineout maul reprieved North Berwick who cleared their lines.

At this lineout Perthshire fumbled the ball and were soon turned over. The North Berwick fly-half sensed his chance and chipped over the top; it was a foot race to the ball and as fullback Rory Bayne pulled his hamstring in the chase the visitors grabbed their second converted try.

With just 12 minutes on the clock North Berwick had their 3rd try. Straight from a scrum, a soft shoulder allowed the fly-half through again, the offload beating the last defender, 0-21.

Startled the North Inch crowd dreaded what could happen next, however, the players had other ideas. A promising attack started by Aidan Watson and continued by Laurence Knight brought ‘Shire deep into the opposition half. However, this opportunity was squandered with runners offside chasing a cross-field kick.

Back defending, Perthshire held out and put pressure on North Berwick eventually winning the turnover. Angus Walker particularly effective and Ben Marshall taking his opportunity to jackal. On the backfoot shortly afterwards these two again, aided by Calum Chalmers, gave no quarter to North Berwick.

John Kelly soon found the ball in his hands and with just enough space squeezed down the wing, but the would-be scoring offload eluded his support runner. A break from Ben Marshall, numerous forwards carries and another lineout maul all got ‘Shire right to the line; only to be undone by an obstruction.

North Berwick’s defence was holding and Perthshire mistakes were killing any momentum they built. Further forays made little progress. Then Aidan Watson added a spark with a scintillating counter-attack run down the right wing, his offload knocked on by the defence ‘Shire were awarded a scrum 7m out.

The ball was shipped from coast-to-coast and back again, Calum Bruce ran a loop to create the overlap but was held up to deny a try. Receiving the drop-out Perthshire built a few phases then Aidan Watson injected pace coming into the mid-field, clean through, he sucked the scramble defenders in, then whipped out a pass to Jack McIntosh who held his width to score in the corner for an unconverted try, 5-21.

The remainder of the half ended in chaotic manner as North Berwick tried to regain the momentum and Perthshire’s mistakes nearly cost them. However, the ball eventually went dead and all on the North Inch could catch their breath as the players regrouped for the second half.

Perthshire’s job was quite clear, in the next 40 minutes they needed to build and then convert their chances to wrestle control of the match. Kieran Maclean came on for Rhys Darlington in the front row, the only change the coaches made at the break.

The men in Black & White came out of the blocks flying. A lineout following a high tackle gave a decent attacking base. Taken cleanly, the ball was spread to the other side where Jack McIntosh chipped over his opposite winger. The defending fullback got to the ball first but the pressure from the onrushing ‘Shire forced him to slice it into touch on the 5m line.

Ross Goodison’s throw-in went to Tom Colvin and the forwards set the maul. It shunted forwards then stopped, a few backs came in to add a bit more shove and Ross Goodison controlled the ball at the back grounding to score, Calum Bruce added the extras, 12-21.

Perthshire were attacking with purpose and direction now. Strong running by John Kelly, Simon McGarry and Ben Marshall ate up the yards. Meanwhile, North Berwick were in all sorts of trouble conceding penalties under the cosh.

A ‘Shire lineout 8m out was again taken down into a maul. This rumbled to the line but was held short. Lewis Murrie released it to his backline and it zipped through the hands to reach John Kelly on the opposite wing who had the pace & power to dive over the in corner. Conversion missed from the tight angle, Perthshire were right back in it, 17-21.

North Berwick woke up and immediately responded after a soft penalty gifted them an easy 3 points from in front of the posts. They then cleared the restart with a 50:22 to ramp up the pressure further. Tom Colvin’s disruption work paid off and it was overthrown, Lewis Murrie reacted quickest and kicked clear.

Still Perthshire piled pressure on themselves knocking on in their own 22, but the forwards had gained supremacy in the scrum. North Berwick started going backwards and ‘Shire won a few penalties in the set piece and open play. The home side were slowly working up the pitch but seemingly unable to breach the 22. AJ Guthrie, now on for Calum Bruce, took an opportunity from 35m out to go for goal, but pushed it wide.

From the drop-out ‘Shire started building again from their own half. Around halfway the ball was sent out to Jack McIntosh on the wing; he danced down the touchline and held, and held, timing to perfection the delayed offload inside for Aidan Watson, who put on the after burners to cover 40m grounding the ball in the corner. The conversion by AJ Guthrie hit the cross bar and bounced over to level the match 24-24.

A high tackle around halfway gifted North Berwick a penalty to restore the lead but it fell short. Chasing the drop out, big hits by Dan Rae then Laurence Knight pushed the visitors back and forced them to knock on. The dominant ‘Shire scrum provided the platform for Aidan Watson & Jack McIntosh work together penetrating deep into opposition territory. Cameron Craig was on for Angus Walker and John Kelly left the field injured so Calum Buce returned to the action.

A wayward throw at a lineout set up a ‘Shire scrum 30m out. The pack won a penalty and Captain Calum Chalmers pointed to the posts. Showing no signs of pressure Calum Bruce slotted it to put Perthshire in the lead, 27-24. The crowd cheered, but knew there were 5 minutes left to see the game out.

Composure failed Perthshire, allowing North Berwick to reclaim the restart without contest then a few minutes later a high tackle by Calum Bruce saw the referee show him a Yellow card. The kick was in range for North Berwicks’s marksman and he made no mistake, 27-27.

There were 20s left of the match as Perthshire sent the restart deep. An intentional knock-on then offside penalties gave North Berwick the opportunity to attack and take it into range of the posts. Another penalty conceded and their man did it again, North Berwick converted from the tee to win 27-30 with the last kick of the match.

A sucker-punch, but Perthshire know this was all of their own making. An 80 minute performance is needed to win, Perthshire started and ended poorly, which cost them the match. However, they can take heart from the response to overhaul a 21 point deficit and get in the position to win. The next stage is to seize and defend the opportunities when they arise. The league is close this year with every team capable of beating the others. Luck and composure will need to turn for Perthshire as the second half of the fixtures approaches.

Can it start this coming Saturday? All are welcome to support Perthshire as they host Murrayfield Wanderers in the League and to contest the Adam Pattinson Memorial Cup. Kick off at 2pm, the Bowling Club will be open from 1pm.

The Eagles are also in action on the North Inch as they play Strathmore 2XV, also a 2pm kick-off. Last weekend away at Grangemouth 2XV tries by Thomas Pounder and Lewis Gray made a contest in the 34-14 defeat. This Saturday Coach Craig Manson will seek to build on the positive performances as they seek a home win.

Photographs taken by Ewan MacKessack-Leitch.

Crieff & Strathearn 24 – 22 Perthshire Eagles

Late rally fails to overcome second half dip.

In total contrast to last weekend’s rain and flooding, Saturday was a windy yet bright sunny day. The newly christened Eagles (formerly 2XV) under Coach Craig Manson had a full squad of regular, new and returning players to pull on the Black & White of Perthshire. There was optimism following the last outing, a 36-22 victory against Waid Academy on the North Inch 2 weeks previously.

The opening plays were frantic. It was all Crieff, they took the ball hard to the line and asked difficult questions of the Perthshire defence. The Eagles held on, just, as Crieff hammered the line. Thomas Pounder seized his chance and intercepted on the goal-line, it was a sprint covering 95m he was just denied as an almighty cover tackle from the flying fullback bundled him into touch.

Perthshire used the field position to force a Crieff knock-on and from the base of the scrum Dane McGregor picked and went, his hulking frame just stopped short. The Eagles played a couple of phases but were illegally turned over. The penalty was tapped and taken back to the line, this time Alan Clark got the ball out to fly-half AJ Guthrie who’s dummy flummoxed the defence then a delayed pass found centre James Mair who dived over for the opening try. AJ duly converted, 0-7.

Keen to build the momentum from the restart, strong carries by Cameron Craig then Ross Goodison brought the Eagles right back into a solid attacking position. However, the support was missing and the ball lost. Defending, Perthshire swiftly regained the momentum courtesy of a Callum Coutts turnover but again impatience in attack lost possession.

Now it was Crieff’s turn to attack. They again worked the ball well but tackles from Alan Clark, James Mair and Ross Alexander kept them at bay. Winning the ball back, AJ Guthrie put in a sweet kick over the top to land a 50:22 and regain the upper hand.

A high tackle after the line out, gave ‘Shire a penalty which Alan Clark took quickly; Rab Pittendreigh nearly collected the floated pass with the try line beckoning. Instead ‘Shire with a few injuries and rejigging in the line settled down with AJ Guthrie kicking over for 3 points.

The tempo calmed for a few minutes and the Eagles switched off momentarily. The hosts took advantage and worked the ball out to the wing, where a sleepy defence did not respond, and crossed over in the corner for an unconverted try, 5-10.

This reenergised the match as both teams revved up again with play moving from end-to-end. James Mair won a crucial turnover defending on the 5m line, ‘Shire then crashed right up through the middle following a superb carry by James Whyte eating up the ground and swatting off defenders.

Crieff regained possession but a loose kick was gathered by Alan Clark who ran it back with added interest. The forwards ratcheted up the pressure as they barged their way to the line then Captain Ryan Beaton surged over to score. The conversion missed, the Eagles restored their 10 point lead.

It did not last to the end of the half. Missing first up tackles, ‘Shire were living dangerously and in their own half. Twice Perthshire won the ball back but could not escape their 22. The ball was held up over the line and Crieff came back again from the goal-line drop-out. The pressure told and on a switch of direction the Eagles were short and the home winger ran into the space to score in the corner.

Half time came and at 10-15, though ahead, the Eagles knew there was still a lot of work to be done.

The next 10 minutes were calamitous. The soft first up tackles continued and the scramble couldn’t compensate. Crieff crossed after gliding through the centre, despite Thomas Pounder covering and wrestling the scorer onto his back he was able to just ground the ball.

Minutes later, slicing through again Crieff ran over the dead ball, much to the home crowd’s consternation. This was amended soon after as the play broke up and Crieff ran it in under the posts, 24-15.

The second half tempo continued at a crazy pace. Both teams testing the limits of their skills in attack and not pulling it off. Despite Georgina Adams’ powerful shift repairing broken bodies the constant changes to the line up were affecting the Eagles’ ability to get into any rhythm or structure. Superb runs by Mikey Evans where he found the space dancing round defenders were not backed up and the forwards could not capitalise on barging carries by Ryan Beaton, James Marley & Kieran Maclean.

The momentum swung in Perthshire’s favour when, after one penalty too many, Crieff saw a player sent to the sin bin. The Eagles used the numerical advantage and sent the ball out to Thomas Pounder who again after covering most the distance was stopped short of the line and stretched to reach but was judged a double movement.

Camped in the 22, Perthshire struggled to get to the line. Eventually after multiple phases and repelled attacks Cameron Craig found the opening he needed. AJ Guthrie added the extras and it was a 2 point game with only minutes left on the clock.

The game ended as it had begun: high pace and chaotic. Perthshire were in the right position but a lack of composure allowed Crieff to win the ball back and boot it into touch to end an entertaining and breathless encounter.

The players knew they had let this one get away with lapses in concentration and weak tackles at times gifting Crieff the opportunities they needed. This was a performance to be proud of as the Perthshire Eagles seek to establish their identity and build into a force to be reckoned with. Huge credit to Connor Nicholls on his debut and to James Marley, Angus McGeoghie and James Whyte on their returns to Perthshire; all took their chance well and will be integral parts of the Eagles going forward.

That starts next week with a trip to top of the table Bannockburn. As the 1XV host Greenock Wanderers (location TBC after the North Inch flooding), Craig Manson needs as many players as possible to make themselves available so Perthshire can put out 2 full teams. Could YOU be one of them? All players of any ability are welcome to join, please e-mail senior@perthshire-rfc.co.uk for more information.

Photos taken by Mike Ryan.