Highland on verge of title success
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HIGHLAND are on the brink of securing the Caledonia Division Two North title after a convincing 43-12 win over Aberdeenshire 2nd XV.
The Canal Park side require just a single point from their remaining four league fixtures to make the championship theirs and can make it a double with victory over Stornoway in the North Regional Bowl on Saturday.
Highland were quickly into their stride from the kick-off and quickly put the visitor’s defence under pressure. A fast ball from a line-out near the opposition line saw the ball given to prop Sinclair Patience, who popped up in the mid-field and charged over for the first try. Despite Scott Fraser’s missed conversion, Highland kept up the pace and soon fine handling put Craig Findlater clear for another unconverted try for 10-0.
Aberdeenshire briefly showed some steel up front but this merely delayed the agile home attack and Darren MacLeod was the next scorer as he was helped over the line by the weight of the pack. Fraser was beginning to get to grips with the wind and landed his first conversion for 17-0. Ben Gordon got an unconverted try for 22-0 before the break, giving the hosts a bonus point and a comfortable lead.
Despite now facing the stiff wind, it made no difference as Highland took only a few minutes to put MacLeod in for his second try after some nice phases. Fraser’s conversion put Dave Carson’s men 29-0 up.
The visitors ground their way back into the game and their determination at the breakdown frustrated Highland, leading to a string of penalties. The visitors pushed near to the Highland line and from the resulting line-out, the throw-in was missed by both sides and an alert Aberdeenshire forward caught the ball in space and dived over. A yellow card for James Taylor soon followed and a quick converted try reduced Highland’s lead to 17 points.
Highland were now rocking slightly and it took another yellow card, this time for Craig Irvine, before they saw began to refocus their efforts. Down two men, they took the game back to Aberdeenshire and set up a drive for Stuart Watson to thunder over, with Fraser’s conversion giving Highland a 36-12 lead.
Minutes from the end, fine handling saw Richard Sim collect the ball at full speed and run straight between two defenders and through for a fine converted try by Fraser for a final score of 43-12.
The other big result was for the under-18 side, who are through to the Caledonia Cup final after a 65-0 win over Aberdeen Grammar. Highland rattled off two early scores with Jack Sutherland first to touch down and Steven Rutlidge both touching down.
The pressure was kept up and with the pack well in charge, Murdo Paterson and Bruce Flockhart both crashed over and with one converted by Fionnlagh Call, it was now 0-24. Grammar struggled to get a foothold in the game and the closing stages of the half were all one-way traffic. Ross Martin, Lyall Archer and Iain Crush all crossed the line, with Call adding a further two conversions for a half-time score of 0-43.
Playing against the strong wind and the home side took heart from having the wind advantage and their defence stiffened. Highland got back into their stride and winger Ruaidh Casey touched down in the corner for 0-48. The exclamation point was put on emphatic victory with tries from Call, James Murray and Harris Ross to cap 0-65 victory.
The youth side will await the winners of Saturday’s Ellon and Mackie Academy contest, with the final taking place at Canal Park on Sunday 23rd March.
