1st XV
Matches
Sat 26 Jan 2019  ·  Tennent's Caledonia League Division 1
Grangemouth Stags RFC
1st XV
28
24
Aberdeen Wanderers RFC
Stags Keeping Supporters on the Edge

Stags Keeping Supporters on the Edge

Dominic Ward28 Jan 2019 - 17:33
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Stags win tight match to move up to 4th in the league table

After their success in the Caley Shield the previous week it was back to league action for the Stags last Saturday as Aberdeen Wanderers made the trip south. Once again coach Deacons shuffled his squad. In the pack Hendry was at number 8 and there was a new front row of Love, Clark and Keigan while in the backs there were starts for McLay and Downie. Heavy rain before kick off left the playing surface very soft and made handling very tricky for both teams. Grangemouth had the advantage of the famous Glensburgh slope in the first half and dominated the early possession. There were good carries from Stangoe and a break from Dempsey but good defence from the visitors kept the scoreline blank. There was an early injury to Binnie and he was replaced by Hind, making his first competitive appearance of the year following his shoulder injury in pre season. On 15 minutes a clearing kick by the Stags was skillfully kept in play by the Aberdeen fullback. He launched a counter attack from well inside his own half before linking with his supporting players. The winger kicked ahead and won the foot race for the touchdown and the opening score. The conversion was on target. Grangemouth hit back and opened their account with their next attack.The ball was recycled through a couple of phases before being moved out to Skelton. The skipper sliced through the defence to slide in near the corner flag. His conversion attempt rebounded off the upright. The Stags continued to dominate possession but failed to exploit the gaps in the defence as they too often took play back into traffic. Skelton had another dart at the line after good handling had released Allan but again the visitors were able to scramble the ball clear. On the half hour mark Wanderers collected their second score. Once again they countered from deep and good support play ended with a try in the corner. This time the conversion was off target. A few minutes later a break by the Aberdeen scrum half almost produced another score but he was bundled into touch 5 metres from the line. However the visitors won the lineout and moved the ball wide to beat the cover and score. This time the conversion was successful. Just on half time the Stags were back on the attack. The pack drove a lineout close to the line and Skelton was again stopped just short. From the scrum Hendry had a drive for the line but when he was stopped the ball was shipped to Stangoe to barrel over from close range. Skelton was unable to add the extras. HT Stags 10 Wanderers 19

Grangemouth started the second period on the front foot and pinned the visitors back in their own half. On 47 minutes another break by Skelton was carried on by Allan but the winger was stopped just short of the line and the ball was knocked on. From the resultant scrum the attempted clearance kick was somehow charged down by Forsyth and the scrum half followed up to dive on the ball for the score. Skelton was again off target with the conversion attempt. A few minutes later the Stags took the lead as they collected the bonus point score. The forwards had a series of drives close to the line before the ball was moved wide for Shannon to run in for the score. This time Skelton was on target with the conversion.Having taken the lead Grangemouth seemed to switch off and this allowed the visitors back into the game. They were short with a long range penalty attempt before only a last gasp tackle from Allan prevented their winger scoring in the corner. Wanderers continued to press and they took a tap penalty close to the line. The Stags defence halted the initial drive before a further surge by the pack resulted in an unconverted score and a 2 point lead going into the closing 10 minutes. Good interplay between Hind and Kerry almost created the opening but play was pulled back for a forward pass. With just 6 minutes to play the Stags were awarded a penalty 35 metres out. Skeltn stepped up and the kick sailed between the uprights for a narrow advantage to the home side. The closing minutes saw Grangemouth back on the attack and with the final kick off the game Skelton landed his second penalty. FT Stags 28 Wanderers 24

The Stags made hard work of securing the victory in difficult conditions. They failed to convert their early pressure into points and then gave away some soft scores. However they fought hard for the victory and moved up to 4th in the league. The players know they will have to tighten up both in defence and attack for the upcoming shield final. Grangemouth now have a 2 week break for the 6 nations. The next match is the shield final against Strathmore on 16th February at Grangemouth with KO 2.30pm

Match details

Match date

Sat 26 Jan 2019

Kickoff

14:00

Competition

Tennent's Caledonia League Division 1

League position

4
Grangemouth Stags RFC
7
Aberdeen Wanderers RFC
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