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Match Report - Uddingston 0 - 19 Accies
An ultimately satisfying if somewhat frustrating morning's work for the boys today, in a game that was dominated by a poor referee and his decisions. This meant that the team, which had to be re-organised due to call offs, had to work together in what became something of an arm wrestle of a game.
Accies excelled themselves in the defensive stakes, with some really solid tackling and good defensive alignment keeping their strong runners at bay. At the forefront of this were Matthew Northcott and the revamped back row, playing as a unit for the first time.
And what a unit they made. Russell Parker put in a strong performance at 7, tackling and supporting throughout. His normal centre partner, making his debut in the scrum, made some of his characteristic runs from 6, scored one driving try around the back of a ruck and made another in support play on an inside run, completely deceiving the defence and filling the supporters with admiration.
Ross Allan made up the third member of the back row. Aside from a rather unfortunate moment when he misread a pass which hit him square in the face, he did not put a foot wrong. He scored a try and had a real battle, which he just about shaded, with one of the best lineout forwards we have come up against this season.
The rest of the revamped scrum made real inroads into their opponents. Shaun Fleming is making a habit of bullocking ball carries and made some very strong tackles. Scott Reid put in a shift in unfamiliar surroundings of the second row, making a few charges forward. Jamie Thomson filled in well at hooker, winning his fair share of opponent's ball and making the run and pass that helped Leitchie score his second try.
Kyle McNulty goes from strength to strength as both a set piece and loose forward. As his enjoyment of the set piece grows, so does the discomfort of his opponent. To those not schooled in the dark arts of the front row, some of our opponent's scrum work just looked like a mess. To those in the know, it is a mess entirely of McNulty's making. He also provided some outstanding examples of rucking, where he cleared out an opponent ruck single handed, tackling and running.
Outside the scrum, Logan Kennedy had a good game in a challenging situation. Up against a tricky customer, his distribution was effective and, when the referee did not intervene with poor decisions, he set the backs off well.
Outside him, the new midfield of Fraser McMillan, Fraser Neilson and Gregor Irvine made some telling runs and defended well, Their shape and character was different from our normal approach and it was regrettable that there was not more opportunity to see them operating together, due to the vagaries of the referee. Fraser Neilson also had his kicking boots on, with two excellent conversions and one hitting the upright.
In the back three, Kieran MacCallum collected kicks and made incursions into the line. Joshua Scott and Patrick Brown both made some excellent runs, freed by running of their team mates. All three also contributed well to the defensive work, turning what could have been a difficult afternoon into a very satisfying one.
Accies 58 - 26 Cumnock / Kilmarnock
A tremendous result with which to begin the season. Accies are back to their barnstorming best, with some outstanding performances all over the pitch. We were not quite as strong defensively as we were in attack, which showed in the tries we conceded, but there is time to build on that.
Some of the attacking play by Accies was first class, with combinations, offloads, barnstorming runs and aggressive intent leading to one of our best scores of the season. Forwards and backs combined well, playing to our strengths both in the pack and midfield. The performances by some of the team's unsung heroes provided great support for the try scorers, some of whom were quite new to the scoreboard.
Leading the way was a barnstorming performance from Ross Allan. Our opponents expected him to cause them problems and he did just that, with two tries supporting an all action game. He was supported in the back row by Jamie Thomson, whose support play provided a lot of ball from 50:50 situations, Jack Barbour, who came on in the second half to add his considerable speed to the pack, and Adam Loftus, who scored his first try of the season by bursting through a ruck following a very nice interplay between forwards and backs. This was orchestrated by Logan Kennedy, who showed his development is not slowing with excellent distribution and thoughtful running in support of his forwards.
The pack put in its usual high quality shift in both loose and tight. The front five combined well to win set piece ball on both our own ball and theirs, with Shaun Fleming winning at least three against the head, supported by the increasingly towering Scott Reid. Kyle McNulty continued to 'McNulty' opponents, including once from a kick off, when the opposition kicked the ball straight at him and he made at least three of them pay handsomely. The second row also put in a strong performance, with both Kandi Cormack and Matt Northcott putting their considerable presence about, with one memorable instance having Matt operating at second receiver against a petrified winger who happened to be there!
In the backs there were some excellent attacking performances. Russell Parker made some of his trademark runs at and through opponents, one of which resulted in a try from 70 metres. He moved to flanker late on in the game to allow a re-shuffle in the backs, demonstrating both the depth of talent in the squad and his own adaptability. Rib McMillan once again sailed through the game, distributing well and leading by example in defence. Fraser Neilson had a good game with ball in hand, covered well for kicks and added ten conversion points to stretch our lead. Wingers played their part, with Gregor Irvine showing his adaptability and talent with some good close quarter work, Jamie Thomson showing off his sidestep and tackling prowess as additions to his ever growing box of tricks and Patrick Brown, early in his playing career, growing into the role.
Joshua Scott also provided a strong performance on the wing, showing real vision and skinning his opponent late in the game for a real finishers try. Kieran McCallum gave what may have been his best performance for the team, with some very good tackling topped off with a try following some slick passing in the backs.
Stephen Leitch gave his best performance for a few games, combining his usual bullocking runs with some superior vision and mazy running, leading to four tries of consistently high quality. His commitment to both attack and defence exemplified Accies game today.
There is still some work to do before next week. Defence needs some work and Dumfries are likely to be more aggressive and up front in their game. However, if we front up and play aggressively at the breakdown, our superior attacking capabilities should come to the fore.
Well done Accies! Great start to the year.
Cumnock/Kilmarnock vs Ardrossan Accies
Report
Another excellent performance by Accies – a real team effort. Our opponents were very confident of giving us a beating, but were sent homewards to think again! After the game, their coaches were very complimentary of some of our players but were also surprised and impressed with our ability to play, as a team, for long periods of time, applying pressure and not allowing them to play. Cumnock / Kilmarnock are one of the contenders this season and we should certainly not take them lightly when we play again. That said, well done to everyone on a very good performance. Another excellent point to note was the encouragement given from the substitutes to the players playing in their positions – great team spirit, guys!
The performance was led from the front, but not just by the forwards. Consistent pressure took its toll on our opposition and, but for a couple of uncharacteristic missed tackles, the differential could have been even more.
The game started off in the way Accies intended to play, with strong pressure in both forwards and backs. Some pre-determined moves came off well, with Ross Allan beginning what was a storming display with two bullocking tries, one from a No8. pickup and another from the back of a ruck. Ross was supported ably by his pack, with Kyle McNulty topping off a characteristically bruising display with the fourth try. They were well supported by the rest of the pack, with Matt Northcott making the most of his size and fitness with some aggressive running and tackling, makeshift second row Jack Barbour bringing his talents to bear in the darker reaches of the scrum, Scott Reid and Shaun Fleming supporting both tight and loose scrummaging with considerable and the back row of Adam Loftus and Jamie Thomson marauding around the pitch and stopping their talents backs from playing.
In the backs, our three half backs made the game tick. The two scrum halves, Logan Kennedy and Kieran McCallum, showed their contrasting talents, with Logan controlling the game from the base of the scrum and setting our backs off on their runs and Kieran running more with the ball and orchestrating things from a little further away. These tactics gave our opponents even more to think about. Fraser McMillan gave a characteristic performance at stand-off, gliding through tackles and gaps like a speed-boat through water! Stephen Leitch made some frankly scary runs, working on the basis of, “I run straight – if you don’t stop me, I run straight through!” He also provided some good distribution to the outside backs and rounded off his performance with a try – the only surprise was that he did not score more! Russell Parker put in a ‘double shift’, showing his versatility with strong running and tackling while playing 13 and then moving into the back row when Adam Loftus was injured. It was from here that he scored a try, powering through a number of tackles and touching down under the posts.
The back three performed well, clearing up ball from kicks and making incisive runs into the back line. Gregor Irvine continued to impress with his runs and his hunger for both the ball and the tackle. Jamie McDougall made some good interventions, especially in defence, and Joshua Scott continued to grow into the position and the game. Fraser Neilson made some incisive interventions into the back line and scored 10 points with his boot – his growing capabilities in converting tries may well become really important when it comes to tighter games.
So, all in all, a very satisfying performance that will see Accies close to the top of the league, if not on top, when all the results are in. There is still a lot of work to be done, especially when we meet up with opposition with talented running in the backs and more aggressive play in the forwards. However, it is very satisfying to watch a strong performance like this, away to one of the contenders for the title.
Thanks go to our intrepid band of away supporters – we couldn’t do it without you. Also, well done to the coaching team. And we do miss you, Kandi and Connor – get back soon.
Cumnock / Kilmarnock 21 - Accies 40
Accies 48 - Annan 5
It just gets better! A first class performance from Accies, with some excellent plays in both attack and defence. The U15 'crowd pleasers' produced some highly capable rugby, showing both great teamwork and flashes of individual brilliance.
Up front, Accies really fronted up. Our front row made some powerful plays throughout the game, led by the ever driven Kyle McNulty, supported ably by Connor... Logue, Shaun Fleming and Scott Read. Kyle scored the first try of the match, catching their defence napping with a well worked lineout move straight from the training paddock.
Behind the front row, Matthew Northcott and Kandi Cormack drove and tackled well, making serious inroads into their defence and making first class efforts when defending. Matthew drove over for the last try of the game, his considerable stature and physique making him unstoppable from 5 metres.
Our back row were all over the pitch. Ross Allan scored the third try with a trademark bullocking run and he and his back row colleagues, Jamie Thomson and Adam Loftus, were all over the pitch, never allowing their players to settle and winning a lot of ball. It was also really good to see the return of Jack Barbour, who made some brave and telling interventions given that it was his first match back from breaking his wrist.
Behind the scrum, Logan Kennedy continues to read the game very well, and he added sniping runs and aggressive tackling to his skills. Outside him, Fraser MacMillan continues to grow into the shadow of John Rutherford, with his ghosting runs and excellent distribution.
In midfield, Stephen Leitch and Russell Parker continue to grow their partnership and made a fearsome sight for their backline. They both made some direct, penetrating runs and first class tackles, never allowing them to settle. Russell also scored three tries, one from a run, another from a bullocking run from a ruck and the final one from broken play, with Fraser MacMillan making a strong assist.
On the wing, there were a number of strong performances. Jamie McDougall supported the efforts of the backs, making some mazy runs and tackles. Nathan Rexter carried well but made his biggest contributions through tackles against players much larger than himself. Joshua Scott continues to grow into a real asset, with at least three telling tackles