by John Preece
Scotland’s second half performance in Stirling, like the weather, could only be described as damp and dismal.
It didn’t look too bad in the first half, with both sides being reasonably well matched, although Wales dominated (and I mean ‘dominated’..) the scrum and ruck. Scotland, however, were awarded a couple of penalties in the first ten minutes, the second of which, Mark Bennett slotted home. 3-0 to the Scots. Scotland had a nearly moment thirty minutes in, but failed to score from a charged-down kick. Wales came back from this and some concerted forward play on the Scots’ line saw a try scored just before half time. 7-3 to Wales.
The second half was all Wales with three tries in the first fifteen minutes and a fourth near the end. Two yellow cards in quick succession handed out to the Scotland forwards did little to help. The end of the match was spoiled by a rather unseemly brawl, which involved most of the players, possibly some of the coaching staff, and spilled over into the spectator seating. The French referee somehow managed to sort out a couple of perpetrators, who were then promptly red-carded. The match ended soon after, 33-3 to Wales.
Overall, the young Welsh side thoroughly deserved their win and the Scotland performance summed up by one of the spectators – “Wisnae great”.
Report and Photo – John Preece
Website/gallery – http://www.jlp-photography.co.uk/International-Sporting-Events
