HONOURS EVEN AS BOTH SIDES BATTLE
HARD TO GET THE BETTER OF MUSSELBURGH MUD Sean Rankin (with finger
raised) and Luke Pettie (on ground, right) celebrate Bruce Riddell’s try.
Selkirk wing Callum McNeill hurtles down the Stoneyhill touchline to score Selkirk’s second try.
Scott McClymont shakes off a defender with team-mates Luca Merolle and Andy Mackay in support.
Henry Bithray gets his kick away just as Musselburgh’s blindside flanker Michael Maltman closes in.
Sean Rankin manages to retain possession despite the best efforts of a Musselburgh opponent.
Muddied but unbowed – both sets of players shake hands at the end of Saturday’s hard-fought contest. [Photos by GRANT KINGHORN PICS]
Musselburgh 12, Selkirk 12
BOTH sides were able to salvage something from
Saturday’s physically draining encounter at windswept Stoneyhill, where the worsening conditions meant it was hard
to distinguish between the mud-caked players in the game’s later stages.
The result allowed Musselburgh to move above Glasgow Hawks in the Tennent’s Premiership table, while Selkirk jumped
back into the play-off places following Aberdeen Grammar’s loss to Currie.
“The conditions were horrendous,” admitted Selkirk skipper Ewan MacDougall after the final whistle, “in fact some
of the worst I’ve ever played in.
“In the first half Musselburgh harnessed the strong wind at their backs and played the corners, confining us to
our own half for almost the whole period. That said, the boys really defended well, and going in at halftime 12-0
down, having played into the elements, wasn’t too disappointing.
“In the second half we drew level within the first 10 minutes, and at that stage everyone probably thought we’d
go on to get the win.
“However, conditions became so bad we found it hard to hold on to ball and hard to secure any worthwhile line-out
possession. Even the scrum ball we managed to win was difficult to do anything with.
“As the game progressed the bad weather really began to take hold. Although both sides had a chance to win it in
the dying minutes, at the end of the day I think each team would probably settle for the draw.”
Turning to the club’s Premiership run-in, the Selkirk skipper is upbeat about the Philiphaugh side’s prospects.
“This draw takes us a point above Aberdeen, so qualifying for the play-offs is now very much in our own hands.
“The boys can now work towards the Edinburgh Accies game, and we’ll see where we are after that.”
The only tries of the first half came from Musselburgh forwards Luke Hutson and Paddy Brown, the former being converted
by Danny Owenson to give the home side a 12-0 interval lead.
After the break Selkirk positively flew out of the blocks. Prop Bruce Riddell burrowed over for the visitors’ first
try in the opening two minutes, before wing Callum McNeill burst down the touchline on an electrifying 50-metre
run to score wide out. Aaron McColm kicked the tricky conversion to level things up at 12-12.
With Storm Dennis finally beginning to match the Met Office’s dire predictions, the Stoneyhill pitch was transformed
into a mud bath, with late penalty attempts by Owenson and Callum Anderson both being blown off-course.
Selkirk’s Peter Forrest was named the visitor’s ‘man of the match’, although he must have been pushed all the way
following another tremendous shift by his second row partner Sean Rankin, who had to watch the closing stages of
the match from the bench, after being yellow-carded for a high tackle.
MUSSELBURGH – J. Ferguson, S. Watt, R. Smith, R. Watt, G. Tait, F. Roddick, D. Owenson, C. Owenson, J. Cain,
C. Arthur, J. Haynes, P. Brown, M. Maltman, M. Outram, L. Hutson. Replacements: E. Bonthron, W. Fleming, C. Pryde,
A. Reddick, P. Cunningham.
SELKIRK - H. Bithray, F. Anderson, R. Cottrell, R. Nixon, C. McNeill, A. McColm, L. Merolle, L. Pettie, J.
Bett, B. Riddell, P. Forrest, S. Rankin, A. Mackay, S. McClymont, E. MacDougall. Replacements - J. Mackay, G. Robertson,
C. Anderson, J. Welsh, L. Berte.
POINTLESS EXERCISE FOR SELKIRK
‘A’ AS MUSSELBURGH 2NDS OUT-MUSCLE VISITORS
All eyes on Musselburgh
scrum-half Nicholas Delaney as he sets up a home attack. Selkirk centre Jy Griffin
weighs up his options in Saturday’s close encounter at Pinkie.
Matthew Mackay prepares
to contest a line-out.
Scrum-half Scott
Clark directs traffic at a ruck
[Photos by JOHN SMAIL]
Musselburgh 2nds 10, Selkirk ‘A’
0
A FIRED-UP Musselburgh 2nds side proved too strong
for Selkirk ‘A’ in Saturday’s crunch Tennent’s Reserve League East 1 fixture at the Pinkie playing fields.
This was the first match this season in which the Souters have failed to register a point, and the loss almost
certainly means it will be Musselburgh, rather than Selkirk, who will contest the East-West Reserve League play-offs
at the end of the league campaign.
“I’m very disappointed,” Selkirk ‘A’ coach Darren Hoggan said after the game. “Fair play to Musselburgh, who handled
the conditions better than us and were more physical than our players.
“That’s our play-off hopes away now, especially with the points system the way it is in the reserve leagues. Our
focus now shifts to finishing in third place, so we’ll be working hard to win both of our two remaining matches.”
With both sides having to contend with a fiercely gusting cross-field wind, Selkirk scrum-half Scott Clark had
the chance to put the first points on the board after nine minutes, but his penalty attempt was blown wide of the
posts.
The visitors then surrendered possession at three consecutive line-outs on their own throw, allowing Musselburgh
to march them back down the field, where outside centre Tom Foley sprinted over the line for the home team’s first
try.
The same player repeated the feat 12 minutes later to increase Musselburgh’s lead to 10-0, with the body language
of Selkirk’s disconsolate players in stark contrast to the increased energy levels being shown by the home XV. A no-holds-barred halftime pep talk by coach
Darren Hoggan saw Selkirk’s players up their game in the second period’s opening exchanges, with wing forward Jamie
Turnbull and teenage prop Moray Haldane prominent in the loose.
Despite exerting more pressure than they’d managed before the interval, Selkirk were unable to break the home side’s
resolute defence, and at the final whistle it was the home players who had deservedly taken the points and the
plaudits.
A hand injury suffered by replacement scrum-half Andrew Tennant was later found to have been fractured after an
X-ray was taken at the BGH.
MUSSELBURGH – C. McMillan, J. Cooke, T. Foley, R. Stott, J. Dickson, B. Walls, N. Delaney, D, Grant, C. Fleming,
D. Hodge, G. Neill, E. O’Brien, L. Knight, M. Crain,M. Crawford. Replacments: R. Stott, F. Sutherland, C. Bain,
B. McLeod, R. Kennedy, D. Slaven, L. Brook.
SELKIRK – M. Rutter, N. Armstrong, J. Griffin, L. Martin, H. Macdonell, D. Cassidy, S. Clark, M. Haldane, M. Francis,
R. Reilly, D. Alexander, J. Houston, L. Cassidy, J. Turnbull, R. Purves. Replacements: M. Waldron, M. Mackay, P.
Smail, M. Stanners, A. Tennant, S. Cockburn.
Referee – Simon Turner (Royal High).
‘A’ XV’S WEDNESDAY NIGHT TRAINING
SESSION ESCAPES WORST OF STORMY WEATHER
Pictured are the Selkirk ‘A’ players who trained
at Philiphaugh last Wednesday night, after Tuesday’s session was cancelled because of the wild weather. Back row,
from left - David Cassidy, Darren Hoggan (coaches), Liam Cassidy, Robbie Reilly, Nathaniel Armstrong, Lewis Martin,
Matthew Stanners & Moray Haldane. Front – Matthew Francis, Harris Macdonell, Scott Clark & Jamie Turnbull.
[Photo – JOHN SMAIL]
Upcoming Fixtures
/ Events
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY
22
GUINNESS SIX NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP
ITALY v, SCOTLAND
at Stadio Olympico (2.15pm kick-off)
A full list of games for season 2019 / 2020 can be
viewed on our 'Fixtures'
page
A full list of results and reports for
all games played this season and the past 18 seasons can be accessed by clicking on the 'Results' link above.
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PLAYERS ENJOY JOINT TRAINING SESSION
WITH SOUTHERN KNIGHTS AT THE GREENYARDS
Callum Anderson
gets his pass away…
… as does his team-mate Ross Nixon. Ex-Selkirk player Ciaran
Whyte in action. Former team-mates Rob
Chrystie & Scott Wight.
MEMBERS of Selkirk’s 1st XV squad swapped Philiphaugh
for the Greenyards last Tuesday night, after head coach Scott Wight arranged a joint training session with FOSROC
Super6 side the Southern Knights.
“It was a really worthwhile exercise,” Scott told the selkirkrfc.com website after the session. “I think there
were a few people questioning why we were doing it, but it was apparent in the changing rooms afterwards that there
was a good buzz amongst the boys, who’d all enjoyed the experience.
“It was good to put ourselves in that kind of environment, and show our players at what level the next step up
is before full professional rugby.
“Over the last few weeks things have been a bit disjointed in our squad, with boys having time off for rehab and
with four of our players being involved with the Scotland Club XV. We also gave a couple of boys a run against
Hawick in the Border League, so things have been a bit fragmented.
“Because we were back to the Premiership campaign this week, I thought it was a really good focus point for us
to pull things together.”
It certainly helped that Scott and Southern Knights coach Rob Chrystie had played together at half-back for Melrose.
“Rob put the session plan together,” said Scott. “The Knights played the Army last Friday so they were doing a
review of that game, and then they were doing a preview of the Stirling County game.
“We went out on the pitch and ran through some of our starter plays, before going into a warm-up session with them.
They wanted to focus on their exits, which gave us an opportunity to counter-attack.
“We then got the opportunity to hold on to the ball for a minute-and-a-half every time we got it, then the players
had to try to retain possession - one of our main focuses for the match against Musselburgh.
“I think it was a very productive session, and I’m grateful to Rob and the Southern Knights players for their co-operation.
SELKIRK’S 2020 SPORTS DINNER
IS A SELL-OUT!
Richard Cockerill
and George McNeill
DINNER organiser John Rutherford has told the selkirkrfc.com
website that next month’s 2020 Sports Dinner at Philiphaugh has completely sold out.
“There’s been an incredible response,” said John, “and it speaks volumes for the charisma of our two speakers -
Edinburgh head coach Richard Cockerill and former world professional sprint champion George McNeill – that tickets
have gone so quickly.”
The dinner is a fund-raiser for the Selkirk club, although a donation will also be made to the Royal Signals Benevolent
Fund.
The event is being held in the club’s Philiphaugh Suite on the evening of Friday, March 13, and should prove an
ideal curtain-raiser for ‘Super Saturday’, when the final three games in the 2020 Guinness Six Nations Championship
will take place.
.
HAWICK LINDEN SEVENS INVITATION
ACCEPTED
SELKIRK fixtures secretary Mary Inglis has confirmed
that that the club has accepted an invitation from Hawick Linden to send a Selkirk ‘A’ team to its annual sevens
tournament at the Volunteer Park on Saturday, April 18.
.
WINNER OF 200 CLUB’S JANUARY DRAW
ANNOUNCED
THE winner of Selkirk RFC’s 200 Club monthly draw is Mary Smail, who receives a cheque for £100. The winning
number (247) was drawn out of the hat by 200 Club secretary Alison Cullen.
.
.
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1st XV
(up to & including Feb 15th, 2020)
P 21 W 11 L 8 D 2
LEADING TRY SCORERS (after 21 matches): 8 – Henry
Bithray; 6 – Scott McClymont, Josh Welsh, Ryan Cottrell; 5 – James Bett, Ewan MacDougall; 3 - Callum McNeill, Aaron
McColm, Luke Pettie, Jacob Henry; 2 – Bruce Riddell, Sean Rankin, Peter Forrest, Luca Berte, Donald Nichol, Andrew
McColm, Callum Anderson, Frazer Anderson; 1 – Josh Mackay, Andrew Renwick, Luca Merolle, Jack Houston, Robert Cook,
Michael Waldron, Ross Purves, Nathaniel Armstrong. Tries scored: 73. Tries conceded: 67.
LEADING POINTS SCORERS (after 21 matches): 88 – Aaron McColm (3 tries, 9 penalties, 23 conversions); 50 - Henry
Bithray (7 tries, 5 conversions); 30 – Ryan Cottrell (6 tries). Total points scored: 494. Total points conceded:
463.
MOST APPEARANCES (after 21 matches): 21 – Luca Berte; 20 – Luke Pettie, Peter Forrest; 19 – Ewan MacDougall, Luca
Merolle, Josh Welsh, Scott McClymont, Callum Anderson, Ryan Cottrell, Bruce Riddell; 18 – James Bett; 17 – Aaron
McColm; 16 – Frazer Anderson, Henry Bithray, Andy Mackay; 15 – Ross Nixon, Sean Rankin; 12 – Donald Nichol; 10
– Josh Mackay.
‘A’ XV
(up to & including Feb 15th, 2020)
P 19 W 12 L 6 D 1
LEADING TRY SCORERS (after 19 matches): 8 – David
Cassidy, Nathaniel Armstrong; 5 – Jy Griffin, Kieran Monks; 4 – Robert Cook; 3 – Ross Purves, Matthew Francis,
Lewis Martin, Andrew Renwick; 2 – Michael Waldron, Robbie Reilly, Clark Young, Mark Rutter, Liam Blair, Gary Robertson,
Donald Nichol; 1 – Rory Hamilton, Matthew Brass, Andrew McColm, Matthew Mackay, Callum McNeill, Ryan Cottrell,
Josh Bain, Liam Cassidy, Grant Forrest, Peter Forrest, Bruce Riddell, Henry Bithray. Total tries scored: 69. Total
conceded: 57.
LEADING POINTS SCORERS (after 19 matches): 124 – Scott Clark (14 penalties, 41 conversions); 37 – David Cassidy
(6 tries, 1 penalty, 2 conversions); 35 – Nathaniel Armstrong (7 tries); Total points scored: 443. Total points
conceded: 360.
MOST APPEARANCES (after 19 matches): 17 –Liam Cassidy, Nathaniel Armstrong; 16 – Kieran Thomson, Matthew Mackay,
Mark Rutter, Matthew Francis; 15 – David Cassidy; 14 – Scott Clark; 13 – Harris Macdonell; 12 – Lewis Martin; 11
– Jamie Turnbull, Paul Smail; 10 – Jy Griffin, Robbie Reilly, Ross Purves; 9 – Harry Aynsley; 8 – Moray Haldane,
Derry Alexander, Michael Waldron, Harry Aynsley, Andrew Davidson, Matty Brass, Liam Blair; 7 – Rory Hamilton, Kieran
Monks, Robert Cook, Andrew McColm; 6 – Grant Forrest, Harry Borthwick.
EDINBURGH ACADEMICAL 2nds v. HAWICK
FORCE
BOROUGHMUIR 2a v. MUSSELBURGH 2nds
BIGGAR 2nds v. HERIOT'S BLUES 2NDs
*********
TENNENT’S PREMIERSHIP
P
W
L
D
Pts
Marr RFC
14
12
1
1
60
Currie Chieftains
15
11
4
0
57
Hawick
13
9
3
1
46
SELKIRK
16
7
7
2
40
Aberdeen Grammar
16
8
8
0
39
Jed-Forest
16
6
10
0
35
GHA
16
6
10
0
33
Musselburgh
16
4
10
2
29
Glasgow Hawks
15
4
11
0
27
Edinburgh Accies
13
4
7
2
26
*****************************************
BOOKERS BORDER
LEAGUE (Pool ‘B’)
P
W
L
D
Pts
SELKIRK
3
2
1
0
11
Hawick
1
1
0
0
4
Peebles
1
0
1
0
1
Kelso
1
0
1
0
0
*****************************************
TENNENT’S RESERVE
LEAGUE EAST 1
P
W
L
D
Pts
Hawick Force
14
13
1
0
67
Musselburgh 2nds
15
11
4
0
58
SELKIRK ‘A’
16
10
5
1
56
Stew/Mel. 2nds
16
8
8
0
50
Edin. Accies 2nds
14
7
6
1
48
Heriot's Blues 2nds
14
7
6
1
44
Biggar 2nds
14
6
8
0
40
Currie Chieftains ‘A’
14
4
10
0
32
Boroughmuir 2A
14
3
8
3
31
Jed-Forest ‘A’
15
1
14
0
17
Sponsors
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LOOKING to celebrate in style? Selkirk Rugby Club’s
Philiphaugh Function Suite offers free room hire… and more! Professional DJ and party planner LAYLA ANDERSON is
available to hire for your party requirements. Photos can be projected on the suite’s big screen via our personalised
photo projection package. If you would like to book an event don't hesitate to get in touch with Selkirk Rugby
Club’s bar and events manager LAYLA ANDERSON on 07563 617 471.
… AND A GREAT VENUE FOR WEDDINGS!
The Philiphaugh Function Suite at Selkirk Rugby
Football Club is available to hire for weddings and receptions. Affordable and competitive rates. Professional
wedding decoration design and DJ hire also available. If you would like to book, don't hesitate to get in touch
with Selkirk Rugby Club’s bar and events manager LAYLA ANDERSON on 07563 617 471.
Photos and content of this site are the property of
Selkirk RFC website and photographers named or unnamed. Any material from this website should not be copied or
redistributed without the owner's prior written permission. Thank you. (Copyright 2000-2017)
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