Rugby – Stewarts Melville v Peebles, Tennent’s NL2

With
three wins from four matches so far, Stewarts Melville were hoping to
maintain their momentum in the Tennent’s NL2 division with a win
over, the visitors to Inverleith, Peebles.

Peebles
kicked off towards the Ferry Road end on a damp afternoon; the ball,
was, however well taken by Stewart’s Melville and James Ferguson
was immediately off, offloading to Dave Allan who found Euan. His
kick through pushed the visitors back although they did manage to
hold on to possession.

Unfortunately
in the early stages play was stopped due to a head injury to Connor
Mackay, bringing his afternoon to a premature end, and Tom Petiau’s
to an early start.

Great
work by the pack at the first scrum of the afternoon saw the home
side regaining possession and the opportunity to attack, Euan
Morrison again involved with good hands from Michael Miller and Joe
Bailey keeping up the momentum. Peebles defended well, however,
winning a scrum and managing to clear their lines.

The
tables were then turned once more as Stewart’s Melville won the
line out, Momo leading the charge from 10m out. A penalty in Stew
Mel’s favour, a line out and a drive from 5m out saw Doug Randall in
for the first try of the afternoon, to the delight of not only the
Inverleith faithful but also that of his travelling support from
Portsmouth – the journey was worthwhile, after all! Euan added the
extras, and, with ten minutes played, it was Stewart’s Melville 7 –
Peebles 0.

At the
restart Matt Sanderson gathered well, allowing Jamie Sword to
progress, and, with good hands from Sean, Momo and Euan, some width
was exploited. A kick through by Fraser Strachan then forced Peebles
on to the back foot once more, and, in an attempt to move the ball,
their pass was adjudged to be forward.

Another
good scrum, good hands and more pressure resulted in a penalty and a
line out 5m out, but, unfortunately, this time, despite being so
close, we could not capitalise and a penalty in Peebles’ favour
gave them a ‘get out of jail’ card.

The
Border’s side then enjoyed some possession and attempted to kick
downfield for territory but the ball was well retrieved by Matthew,
and, thereafter, Jamie McGurk breaking through, but the slippery ball
was lost.

The home
side were soon back in the ascendancy and it was one way traffic with
around 20 minutes played, with the pressure resulting in a kick-able
penalty. With only one converted try at this stage, the opportunity
to get three points was a no-brainer for Euan. Stewart’s Melville
10 – Peebles 0.

The
movement of the ball between both forwards and backs was impressive
at this stage, but, maybe, a little too ambitious, as, against the
run of play, the opportunity for an interception came, giving Peebles
their first points. 25 minutes played, Stewart’s Melville 10 –
Peebles 7.

Though
Stewart’s Melville continued their dominance and were definitely
playing all the rugby, Peebles had their tails up after scoring and
were starting to gain more possession and territory, a well executed
kick bobbling into touch 5m from the Stew Mel’s try line.

It was
then Peebles’ turn to apply the pressure, and, although Stewart’s
Melville did receive some respite, with a penalty coming their way,
this was short lived as the visitors attacked once more, utilising
the width of the pitch. Some uncharacteristically poor defending
then allowed them in for a well deserved try which was duly
converted.

With
around 35 minutes on the clock the scoreline was Stewart’s Melville
10 – Peebles 14, and thanks to a solid defensive effort in the last
5 minutes, that’s where the half time score remained .

Stewart’s
Melville got the second half underway and further pressure from
Peebles led to a penalty and an easy 3 points around the 50 minute
mark. Stewart’s Melville 10 – Peebles 17.

There was
more of a balance in play at this stage, in terms of possession, and
there appeared to be a degree of panic on both sides, particularly
from Stewart’s Melville, who found themselves chasing the game
despite their early dominance.

Patience
is a virtue, though, and its reward seemed to be coming as the
Inverleith men attacked from 10m out – only to be met by a solid
Peebles response that saw the visitors clear the danger back to the
half way line.

At this
point Neil Bowie entered the fray and added what was needed in the
midfield, helping us to gain some important territorial advantage and
the opportunity to attack once more, with Joe Bailey enjoying a
trenchant run up the stand side.

This
resulted in more pressure on the Peebles line, and, although
possession was lost, it was eventually regained for a sustained
period, giving Fraser Strachan the chance to nip over for the try,
which, although long in coming, was most welcome. Unfortunately the
additional 2 points were not added. 65 minutes played, Stewart’s
Melville 15 – Peebles 17.

There was
now a visible but controlled urgency in the way that Stewart’s
Melville were playing as they applied more pressure, and, eventually
Ruaridh Mitchell powered his way over. The electronic score board,
batteries now recharged, indicated 70 minutes and the score line
Stewart’s Melville 22 – Peebles 17.

With a
tense 10 minutes left, tempers were somewhat frayed and an
altercation saw the first yellow cards being produced, the recipients
on both sides. Losing Joe at any time is a major loss but at least
it was 14 vs 14. The moral of the story is, however, ‘don’t mess
with Joe Bailey!’

As Stewart’s Melville continued to apply pressure, we were awarded a penalty that was clearly kick-able. The more conservative among us would have taken the 3 points, however, with the dominance being displayed at this point, the right decision was to go for the fourth try and the bonus point and it came courtesy of James Ferguson, coming off his left wing and bursting through. Final score: Stewart’s Melville 27 – Peebles 17.

Thanks to Stew Mel for the report and Jackie MacKenzie for the images

Images from the match will appear here