Stags Get First League Points on the Board

After the disappointment of the opening day defeat the Stags were back at home last Saturday with newly promoted Banff making the long trip south to Glensburgh. Grangemouth made 4 changes from the previous week, all in the pack. There was a first league start for number 8 Harvey while McNab, Weir and Stirling were also in the starting XV. On a perfect day for rugby the Grangemouth pack showed early dominance in the scrum. On 8 minutes a huge drive by the pack destroyed a Banff scrum. The ball was quickly moved along the back line giving just enough space for Allan to score in the corner. Skelton was unable to add the extras. Five minutes later Allan again burst through the visitors defence before slipping the pass to Skelton to score under the posts. This time the stand off was able to convert his own try. The Stags continued to press but a combination of handling mistakes and frequent penalties delayed further scores. Try number 3 did follow on 26 minutes. A good run from skipper Denny took play to the Banff 22. Dempsey continued the move before Christie and McNab exchanged passes with hooker Christie crashing over under the posts. Skelton slotted the conversion. Straight from the kick off Allan raced upfield. McNiff was in support and he passed to Hind to round the fullback for an unconverted score. Having secured he bonus point Grangemouth seemed to switch off and this allowed Banff some possession and territory. They pinned the home side in their 22 and having been held up over the line they finally scored from a quick tap penalty close to the line. HT Stags 24 Banff 5

The start of the second half saw the Stags back on the attack. From a scrum in midfield Hind and Forsyth combined to give Allan the ball. The winger passed back to Hind who in turn passed to young Adam Mowat to round the final defender for a well worked score. Skelton was on target with the conversion. On 50 minutes Mowat returned the favour by giving the scoring pass to Hind. From a scrum Hind put Forsyth through a gap. The scrum half passed to Mowat who linked with Hind to dive over for the score. Skelton was unable to add the conversion. Grangemouth quickly added 2 further scores. First good hands took play close to the Banff line. The ball was recycled and Allan was on hand to score in the corner. From the kick off Forsyth and Hind linked up again before the scrum half passed to Denny to burst through the defence and score under the sticks. This time Skelton added the easy conversion. Once again Grangemouth seemed to switch off and this allowed Banff in for their second try. The initial break in the centre was halted just short of the line but a penalty was conceded at the breakdown. Banff took another quick tap penalty to crash over for a converted try. The closing 10 minutes resulted in one try to each team. First some good continuity play ended with Hind completing his hat trick, Skelton added the conversion. Then in the last minute a kick and chase by the visitors caused chaos in the home defence. The loose ball was collected by a Banff player for an unconverted score in the corner. FT Stags 55 Banff 17

This was a deserved win but a patchy performance by the Stags. They dominated the scrums and there was some good running and support play. However once again they made too many handling errors and gave away frequent penalties at the breakdown. The visitors fought hard throughout and were rewarded with 3 trys. They will certainly be a much tougher team to beat on their own pitch. This week the Stags have a break from league action as they travel to take on Dunfermline in the Shield. KO is 3pm