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News Article |
| MORAY 38 HIGHLAND 2NDS 15 |
| Mon 26th Sep 2016 |
Moray faced their sternest opposition of the season so far when they played third placed Highland 2nds in the BT Caledonia League Division 2 North West at Morriston last Saturday, coming away with a well deserved 38 points to 15 victory.
The early exchanges did not augur well for the home side, knocking-on the visitors kick-off and being driven backwards in the resulting scrum. Moray's defence was strong however, and it was not until the 8th minute that the Inverness side took the lead, kicking a penalty after Moray were caught offside.
Seven minutes later home centre Harvey AJ Freeman almost made the line after some slick passing by the three-quarters, but again a retreating scrum lost Moray any advantage. This disappointment was short lived when full-back Lewis Small capitalised on quick ball transfer to touch down in the left corner. Although the conversion was missed, this gave Moray a 5-3 lead.
The visitors responded by pressing hard over the next 20 minutes but an easy penalty was missed in front of the posts and they were frustrated by some impressive Moray defence.
In spite of losing first choice scrum-half Callum Watson to injury, it was the home side who finished the first half in the ascendency, capitalising first on a searing break by centre Frankie Du Toit which forced a line-out to Highland close to their line. The ball was overthrown and flanker Marc Higgins pounced to touch down a converted try.
This was followed a minute later by another home try when stand-off Calum Henderson breached the visitors defence and slipped the ball to winger Keiran Young to dot down in the corner. Although the conversion was missed this gave Moray a healthy 17-3 halftime lead.
The visitors responded positively at the start of the second period, kicking to touch a penalty for "not releasing". From the subsequent lineout some poor tackling let Highland's outside centre in for a try near the posts. The easy conversion reduced the home side's lead to seven points at 17-10.
A period of intense pressure from the home side resulted in a penalty in front of the posts. The opportunity to take the three points was spurned by Moray captain John Westmacott and although the ball was fumbled, an interception from the resulting scrum by Moray's classy no.10 and "Man of the Match" Calum Henderson resulted in the bonus point try. Connor McWilliam's conversion made the score 24-10.
By now the fitter Moray pack were dominant with tries in the 55th and 57th minutes. Both involved long serving and ubiquitous No8 Neil Wiseman. The first followed another infringement by the visitors at the breakdown. The penalty was kicked to touch in the corner and at the resulting lineout, the No8 caught and drove over for a try.
The second resulted from scrummage ball taken "against the head" which Wiseman picked up and fed to fellow back row forward Higgins for his second and Moray's sixth try of the afternoon. In spite of the blustery conditions both tries were converted by the reliable boot of Connor McWilliam to make it 38-10 in Moray's favour.
In spite of the scoreline, the visitors were far from finished and 10 minutes of intensive pressure saw Moray's abrasive winger Keiran Young yellow carded for not releasing in the tackle, close to his own line. Highland capitalised from the penalty to score their second try. With the conversion missed this made the final score Moray 38 Highland 2nds 15.
Moray's pack, which had been so dominant in previous games, took a while to settle. However, the determination and improved handling and inter passing by the three quarters made for an entertaining match and a well deserved victory placing them at the top of the league. They will need to maintain this level of play when they take on unbeaten local rivals RAF Lossiemouth away, tomorrow (Saturday) kickoff 3.00pm.
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Caledonia 2 North |
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| Aberdeenshire |
12 |
46 |
| Highland 2nd XV |
11 |
46 |
| Moray |
12 |
40 |
| Ross Sutherland |
10 |
22 |
| Banff |
12 |
19 |
| Mackie |
10 |
10 |
| Aberdeen Grammar 2nd XV |
9 |
1 |
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Last 1st XV Game |
| 1st XV Season (2021/22) |
| Banff 33 - 39 Moray |
| 5th Mar 22 - KO: 15:00 |
| Venue: Duff House |
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