Stags lose out in Forfar

The Stags reached the midway point of the league season last Saturday as they travelled to Forfar to take on second place Strathmore. Grangemouth made 3 changes with Binnie and Harvey starting in the pack and young Adam Mowat coming in on the wing. On a perfect day for rugby it was the home side who made a strong start. They used their big forwards to make the initial yards before spinning the ball wide to their lively backs. Somehow the Stags survived this initial period of pressure and after 10 minutes of defence Grangemouth broke upfield with Gemmell taking play into the home 22. Strathmore were penalised at the breakdown and Skelton slotted the simple kick. The home side hit back immediately. The Stags lost a lineout and Strathmore took play into the Grangemouth 22. The home forwards had a series of drives on the line and were then held up over the line. However from the resultant scrum a blindside move created the extra man for an unconverted score. Straight from the kick off another missed tackle saw Strathmore back on the attack inside the Stags 22. The home pack had several attempts to drive over the line before finally Grangemouth ran out of defenders to allow Strath in for a converted score. After defending for most of the first quarter Grangemouth finally gained some territory and possession. Skelton was wide with a long range penalty attempt. Soon after Gemmell and Kerry combined to take play into the home 22. The forwards then drove a lineout over the line but the referee decided the ball was held up. From the resulting scrum Harvey, Kerry and Black all were stopped just short before a turnover allowed the home side to clear their lines. The half ended with Strathmore back on the attack but the Stags defended well to prevent any further scores. HT Strathmore 12 Stags 3.

Coach Deacons made 3 changes at the interval with Bell, Christie and Scott all coming on in the pack. While the lineout remained a lottery the Grangemouth forwards began to dominate the scrums. They pinned Strathmore in their 22 and following several scrum penalties the home prop was given a yellow card. The Stags were unable to to take advantage of the extra man and on 55 minutes the home side broke the siege and kicked long into the Grangemouth 22. The chase was good and Strathmore won the turnover before simple hands in he backs saw the home side in for a converted score against the run of play.Grangemouth were quickly back on the attack. Stangoe had a couple of runs as the Stags worked through the phases. Finally Dempsey popped up on his opposite wing to beat the cover and run round under the posts. Skelton added the extras. Grangemouth continued to push for further scores. Dempsey was unlucky with the bounce of the ball as he chased a kick through and then Skelton and Gemmell were held up just short of the line. However after absorbing all this pressure the home side again broke upfield and from a tap penalty close to the line the created the space for the bonus point score. Grangemouth fought hard in the closing minutes as they looked for a losing bonus point but again were unable to break down the home defence. FT Strathmore 24 Stags 10.

The coaches and players were left frustrated by the result. The first half performance was poor with the Stags missing far too many first up tackles and once again there were problems with the lineout. The second half saw an improvement but despite winning a good supply of ball there was a lack of composure in the red zone. This week the Stags take a break from the league when they welcome Mackie to Glensburgh for a Caledonia Shield tie The KO is 1.30pm. The next league fixture is at home on 2nd December when Harris are the visitors