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Rams Finish Season With A Flourish- Birkmyre 10 Moffat Rams 34

Published on 24 April 2007 at 13:23:00

 

 

Birkmyre 10  Moffat Rams 34

Moffat Rams brought their 2006/2007 season in Scottish Hydro Electric Regional League (West) Division 2 to an end with a healthy win over Birkmyre in Kilmacolm that saw the Rams finish in second place and cement their promotion to Division 1 for next season. Injuries and unavailability meant a fresh look for the Rams at kick-off with Graham Gemmill moving to scrum-half, Clint Smith moving up to stand-off and Alex Jefferson starting at full-back.  In the pack, things were a bit more settled with a tried and tested powerhouse.

In typical fashion, the Rams seemed a bit slow to start and the first quarter saw the game ebb and flow as both teams got to grips with the strong wind that favoured Birkmyre.  The Birkmyre backs sought to use the wind with some telling kicks that put Jefferson under pressure, but good back-up Moffat defence kept them at bay.  A couple of good Moffat breaks saw the first pressure on Birkmyre, but again good defence kept the scores level.  Moffat were struggling to get any rythym going, and this was exacerbated when prop Craig Currie picked up an injury that resulted in Kenny Carter moving to prop and Alan Tyler taking to the field in the second row.  Birkmyre gave the new set-up no time to settle as they pushed Moffat right back.  A sustained period of pressure saw Birkmyre first miss a very kickable penalty and then set up camp on the Rams' 5m line, but outstanding Moffat defence held them back.  However, Birkmyre finally broke the deadlock with a well-taken penalty to see them 3-0 ahead.

The Rams attempted to get immediate retaliation saw a good break from Jefferson out of defence only stopped by a nasty high tackle by a Birkmyre wing-forward, resulting in a yellow card for the Birkmyre player and the end of the match for Jefferson as he was replaced by Stuart Renwick.  Renwick settled well with some good kicks from defence easing the pressure and when the Rams were awarded a penalty just inside the Birkmyre half, Kevin Jack struck a superb into-wind kick to level the scores.  The Rams had their tails up now and a quick tap penalty from Gemmill almost saw him stopped only just short of the line.  It was Moffat's turn for pressure now, but they couldn't breach the Birkmyre defence.  Just when it appeared the scores would be tied at half-time, Birkmyre charged down and caught a Moffat kick from defence to score, the conversion seeing the score at 10-3 at the interval.

A stern talk by coaches Andy Ferguson and Ian Hobson saw a revitalised Rams start the second period in determined fashion.  A super break from Andrew Wallace was only just stopped short, but the recycled ball was fed to Jack who dived over to score.  Jack's conversion levelled the scores.  There was only one team in it now, and when a Gemmill kick and follow-up saw them once again in Birkmyre territory, Jack elected to go himself with a skilful series of side-steps and dummies that left the Birkmyre defence grasping at thin air as he grabbed his second try and conversion to put the Rams 10-17 ahead.  The relentless Moffat pressure was forcing Birkmyre into making basic errors, and from such a mistake Jack struck a super penalty kick from the half-way line to bring the score to 10-20.  The healthy travelling Moffat support were then given further cause to cheer as Bob Drennan charged down a defensive kick to score.  An in-form Jack duly added the conversion before almost scoring his third try with a break up the line from a clever interception, but he was stopped just short.  A Moffat penalty on the line resulted, but despite appeals from fans and players alike, the ball was alleged not to have grounded from the resulting ruck.

Moffat were really on form now, and superb catches from hooker Scott Galloway and replacement prop Kenny Chicken plus great forward breaks from No 8 Matt Wennington, Tyler, Galloway and Chicken plus from wingers Dave Scott and Calum Jardine characterised the second-half team effort.  The icing on the cake was provided by Gemmill, whose second quickly-taken tap penalty saw him jink over to score; Jack's conversion took the final score to 10-34.

This was a fitting end to a season that has seen the Rams strengthen from week to week in the latter stages.  Backs' Coach Ian Hobson was delighted at the performance; "That was the proverbial game of two halves, but this team don't like losing now and pulled it all together in that tremendous second-half performance". Head coach Andy Ferguson was also all smiles; "We fielded what may have been seen as a depleted team out there today, but these lads have got self-belief now and responded magnificently to the task in the second half.  They've put in a tremendous effort this season and have been rewarded with a well-deserved promotion".

Moffat:  A Jefferson, D Scott, A Wallace, K Jack, C Jardine, C Smith, G Gemmill, C Currie, S Galloway, C Little, J McDowall(C), R Drennan, P Smith, K Carter, M Wennington.

Replacements (all used):  A Tyler, K Chicken, S Renwick.