GHA RFC MATCH 173: GHA RFC 16 – 32 PEEBLES RFC 

2009/2010: Scottish Premiership Two

GHA RFC 

 PEEBLES RFC

C. Binnie15D. Anderson
R. O’Keefe14A. Smellie
(c) N. Cassie13S. Gee
R. McClymont12C. Borthwick
G. Jones11N. Hogarth
J. Noonan10N. Warnock
A. Gillman9F. Strachan
G. Warnock1W. Aitken
G. King2R. McConnell
A. Kelly3A. Clark
I. Smith4D. Harvey
R. Jenkins5M. Thomson
T. Peyton6J. Oakes
J. Pinder7D. Sangster
D. Kellock8D. Paton
 I. Nelson16M. Carryer
 J. Coffey17N. Clark
D. McKay18S. Smellie
B. Farrell19C. Hunter
Cassie, PinderTryHogarth, Hunter, Paton, A. Smellie, Warnock
ConWarnock (2)
Noonan (2)PenWarnock
DG
Referee
Mr C. Brett (Edinburgh RS)

 

GHA suffered yet another home defeat on Saturday. But the final scoreline, with Peebles winning by 16 points, was no reflection on how close the contest was until the final five minutes. In that time Peebles not only denied GHA a bonus point but they gratefully accepted 15 gifted points. 

Until then, neither team had been more than six points head. That was the lead that GHA held midway in the second half, and even as game approached its close Peebles were ahead by only 17-16.

GHA could well have been better placed at that stage if they had capitalised on their two tries. But each time they immediately allowed Peebles to respond, the visiting team going to 10-5 after 38 minutes and then 17-16 on the hour.

A Neil Hogarth try midway in the first half was the first score of the game, but GHA responded 14 minutes later, prompted by a Jim Noonan break just inside the Peebles half. Jamie Pinder powered on to continue the thrust, and Ross McClymont provided the link for Niall Cassie to score in the left corner.

Noonan missed the conversion, but after a Craig Hunter try for Peebles the home stand-off cut the visitors lead to 10-8 with a penalty goal just before half-time. His second such score, 12 minutes into the second half, took GHA ahead for the first time at 11-10, and a Noonan kick into the right corner gave his pack the position to drive over from a lineout for a Pinder try.

Peebles again quickly responded, this time with a David Paton try. Neil Warnock converted, but two drop kicks by Noonan went agonisingly close. The first was wide, and the second from 40 metres sneaked under the crossbar.

It was then that the game went horribly wrong for GHA. Warnock kicked a 40-metre penalty goal, Alan Smellie finished off with the bonus-point try after an interception deep inside the home 22, and a chargedown gifted Warnock an added-time try which he converted.

GHA are now the only club without a win in the Scottish Hydro Premier Two table. But all is not doom and gloom at Braidholm. The second XV racked up more than 80 points in their Reserve League Division 2 match at Musselburgh on Saturday, and the Braidholm team kept up their winning ways in the West League Division 3 with a home win against Hyndland.

As a footnote, the Peebles team bus arrived late because of motorway traffic problems, but GHA readily agreed to delay the kick-off by half an hour. Perhaps the Jed-Forest coach should note that following his ill-informed, unwarranted, and totally unacceptable comments regarding GHA’s similarly unavoidable late arrival at Riverside Park the previous Saturday.

Source: Bill McMurtrie

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