Marr 13

Hawick 31

COLIN RENTON @ BT Murrayfield

HAWICK confirmed their status as the country’s dominant club team when they shrugged aside a shaky first half performance to see off a gutsy Marr outfit and complete the league and cup double. The second half showing was in complete contrast to the opening period, and Greens’ coach Matty Douglas credited Marr for that.

“They had to do something a bit different, and they did. They kicked a lot of ball to us in the first half and, if I’m honest, it was a poor first half for us. We had a lot of individual errors and that’s not like us. But the last ten minutes we started to see the Hawick we’ve been all season,” he said.

Of the second half transformation, he added: “We felt we hadn’t dealt a blow and we were only three points down. What I said at half time certainly helped and second half was outstanding – character, structure, defensively, everything. I can’t praise them enough.”

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In the Marr camp, Kenny Diffenthal accepted that his men had paid the price for a disappointing start to the second period.

“If you make errors you’re going to get punished, especially against a team like Hawick,” he said. “First half, we did what we wanted to do and we went in reasonably happy. A couple of errors in the second half, one after the other and that was us, chasing it from there.

“When you start to chase the game that’s when you make more errors and that’s when they started to put a squeeze on the game. But I’m proud of the boys, they tried right to the end and everybody got a chance to run out at Murrayfield, so I’m reasonably happy but disappointed.”

The match opened at a ferocious pace. A second minute punch up elicited a word of warning for the captains but failed to quell the frantic nature of the contest, with errors on both sides but neither team able to gain the upper hand.

The Ayrshiremen were first to visit opposition territory, with Ben Johnston picking up at the base of a scrum and making the incursion. Hawick dealt comfortably with the initial move, but offended at the next breakdown and Colin Sturgeon steered the penalty kick between the sticks to open the scoring.

The action was confined to the Hawick half, and the Borderers were struggling to contain the early exuberance of their rivals. Sturgeon doubled the lead when he thumped over a long-range penalty in 16 minutes as the momentum remained firmly with Marr.

There were 25 minutes on the clock before Hawick mounted an attack of any note. A hack ahead caused some uncertainty in the Marr defence, but a fumble as the ball was recycled meant the move came to nothing.

The next Hawick attack also ended with a knock-on, but an offence by Marr at the ensuing scrum gave Kirk Ford a chance a straightforward opportunity to claim points, and he duly stroked over the kick.

There was now more of a spring in Hawick’s step and the back-row trio of Stuart Graham, Calum Renwick and Jae Linton all had a go with ball in hand. And the final play of the half saw the Borderers move the ball along the line for the first time. However, Ronan McKean was hustled into touch 15 metres from the line and the period ended with Marr three points ahead.

McKean may have been foiled on that occasion but he was quick to pounce on the next opportunity that came his way. Jake Jacobsen failed to control a Kyle Brunton kick and the big winger hacked the ball ahead then showed his pace to win the race to the line. Ford was on target with the conversion.

And the Hawick full-back also added the extras a couple of minutes later after the Borderers grabbed a second try. This timeGrahamcharged down an attempted clearance inside the Marr 22 and Fraser Renwick gathered the loose ball before scampering in between the sticks.

The momentum had swung and now it was Marr who were struggling to contain the green tide. Ford nudged Hawick further ahead when he banged over a penalty, then claimed five more points when he capped a flowing Hawick move by touching down in the corner.

Marr seized a lifeline with 15 minutes to play when Conor Bickerstaff was rewarded for his persistence as he ploughed through one tackle then bounced off another before stretching over the whitewash. Sturgeon’s conversion ensured there was still life in the game.

Ford booted another penalty to leave Marr needing two scores and he was on target with another effort to kill off any lingering hopes. And the Borders contingent in the stands had already kicked off their celebrations before the referee blew his final whistle.

Teams –

Marr: C Inglis; J Jacobsen, G Paxton, C Bickerstaff©, S Bickerstaff; C Sturgeon©, G Baird; G Reid, B Jardine, A Acton, D Andrew, H Murray, F Grant, C Young, B Johnston. Subs: B Nicholl, C Miller, A Johnston, M Blair, N Calder, J Scott, G Beckwith.

Hawick: K Ford; L Ferguson, A Mitchell, E Reilly, R McKean; K Brunton, G Welsh; S Muir©, F Renwick, N Little, D Redpath, S Fairbairn, S Graham, C Renwick, J Linton. Subs: M Carryer, R Macleod, M Brogan, H Donaldson, D Lightfoot, G Huggan, C Welsh.

Referee: David Young

Scorers –

Marr: Try: C Bickerstaff; Con: Sturgeon; Pens: Sturgeon 2.

Hawick: Tries: McKean, Renwick, Ford; Cons: Ford 2; Pens: Ford 3.

Scoring sequence (Marr first): 3-0; 6-0; 6-3 (h-t) 6-8; 6-10; 6-15; 6-17; 6-20; 6-25; 11-25; 13-25; 13-28; 13-31.

Man-of-the-Match: Hawick’s second half transformation threw up numerous contenders, with Shawn Muir, Stuart Graham and Kirk Ford all in the mix. However, not for the first time this season, Jae Linton earned the nod for a massive contribution.

Talking point: The sizeable and vociferous support for both teams proves that the passion for rugby at this level still burns bright and confirms the importance of a vibrant club scene for the long-term health of the game.

 

Meanwhile …

Stewartry took the honours in the Shield competition when they emerged as 22-17 victors over East Kilbride in a keenly contested affair.

Fraser Forsyth and Michael Yates had two tries apiece for the Castle Douglas side, while Evan Martin and Matthew Smith both dotted down for East Kilbride as Stewartry reached the break with a 17-8 lead and held off a gutsy second half effort by their opponents to land the silverware.

Kinloss Eagles turned on the style to post a 69-32 win over Panmure in the Bowl. Kinloss led 34-15 at the break after Isikeli Railoa and Pita Moku had two tries apiece and Tyla Turner also scored, while Lewis Green kicked the other points. Marcus Van Der Esch and Chris Cruickshank each claimed a try for Panmure and Ethan Snitch added the rest of the points with the boot.

Moku completed his hat-trick shortly after the restart and, despite a red card for Josaia Vuetimacuata, Kinloss kicked on to complete the job. Moku took his personal haul to five tries and Waisea Qase bagged two, while the Broughty Ferry men added further scores through Gordon Melville and Thomas Jarron.

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