Stags Through to Next Round of Shield

The Stags took a break from league action last Saturday as they welcomed Caley 1 side Mackie to Glensburgh for the first round of the Caledonia Shield. Grangemouth made 4 chamges to their starting lineup with Noble and Christie promoted from the bench, Jamieson back at prop and a first outing of the season for Taurino King. On another perfect day for rugby it was the visitors who made the better start after Grangemouth dropped the ball from the kick off and were immediately under pressure in their own 22. The Stags survived the initial attacks with some solid defence. However on 6 minutes Mackie opened the scoring. After several phases of play they finally created space out wide and were able to score an unconverted try in the corner. Grangemouth hit back and opened their account on 10 minutes. Fisher made the initial break in midfield and the play was carried on by McNiff and Hind. Mackie gave away a penalty at the breakdown allowing Fisher to kick to the corner. The lineout was secured and the forwards drove over the line with Scott collecting the touchdown. Fisher added the conversion. Mackie were soon back on the attack and a kick through caused panic in the home defence. The ball went loose and it was a simple task for the Mackie player to pick up and dive over in the corner. Once again the conversion was off target. Grangemouth were now beginning to dominate possession. On 20 minutes Fisher was wide with a penalty kick but was successful a few minutes later as the visitors were caught offside. The Stags took the lead a few minutes later with a superb try. Crisp handling in the backs allowed Allan to come into the line at pace. He sliced through the initial defensive line with an angled run before cutting back to the outside to outpace the fullback and run round under the posts.Fisher added the easy conversion. Grangemouth continued to press and increased their lead just before the interval. The forwards drove a lineout from the 22 to the 5 metre line. Jamieson peeled off the back and slipped the ball to Forsyth who in turn gave the scoring pass to Pedyo who squeezed in at the corner. The conversion attempt was wide. HT Stags 22 Mackie 10.

The second half started with the Stags once again on the attack. Taurino King had the initial run and the move was carried on by Scott. When the ball was recycled Jamieson passed to Binnie and the skipper crashed over in the corner. Fisher was on target with the difficult conversion from the right hand touchline. Despite now trailing by 19 points and losing a man to the sin bin the visitors refused to lie down. They narrowed the gap after their scrum half darted down the blindside of a scrum and ran in unopposed for a converted score. As the game entered the final quarter the visitors made it a one score game. Grangemouth conceded a series of penalties and from a short range tap penalty the scored near the posts. The conversion reduced the lead to 5 points and the game was back in the balance. However the Stags managed to regroup and with 6 minutes to go they increased their lead. After a spell of pressure inside the their 22 the visitors tried to clear their lines with a kick downfield. Allan collected the ball in his own half and set off on a mazy run. He avoided several tackles as he made his way deep into the Mackie 22 before being hauled down just short of the line. The referee judged no knock on in the tackle and Hind was on hand to pick up and score near the posts. Fisher added the extras. Once again the visitors hit back and closed the gap after they took a quick tap penalty to score a converted try. In the closing minute another run from Allan took play up to the Mackie 22. The visitors were penalised at the breakdown and with the last kick of the game Fisher landed a penalty. FT Stags 39 Mackie 31.

This was a good victory for the Stags over a side from the division above. The forwards were again on top in the tight with the lineout working well especially in the first half. The backrow of McNiff, Mcnab and Hind worked well as a unit and dominated the breakdown. The backs ran well with ball in hand and defended strongly throughout. For his elusive running Allan was man of the match for the second week in a row. Its back to league action this week with the 1sts at home to Blairgowrie with KO 3pm. The 2nd XV are also back in action as they make the short trip to Bannockburn.