‘A’ XV hit by double whammy
DESPITE putting up a brave fight, a
makeshift Selkirk ‘A’ XV lost its unbeaten record — and with it the team’s top placing in National 2nd XV League
Division Four East — after being narrowly defeated by promotion rivals Perthshire 2nds on Saturday.
The loss, coupled with a serious injury to the home side’s talismanic forward Billy Gentleman, completed a thoroughl
depressing weekend for the Selkirk club.
The veteran number eight sustained a sprung collar bone in the first half after being trapped at the bottom of
a ruck, and will have his arm in a sling for the next fortnight. This injury could well signal an end to the playing
career of one of Selkirk’s most loyal servants, and the ‘A’ team sorely missed his presence in the second half
of Saturday’s match.
Already hit by a spate of call-offs and 1st XV call-ups, no fewer than four players had to be called into the home
line-up for their first appearance of the season — Hugh McDonald, Grant Kinghorn, John McDonald and the man who
seems to have discovered the secret of eternal youth, Andy White.
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Billy Gentleman -
suffered sprung collar bone.
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The scores were level at 10-each at halftime, with Selkirk’s points coming from a Kinghorn try and a penalty and
conversion by Mark Easson.
After the break, Perthshire’s more penetrative threequarters added three tries to the two they scored in the first
period, while Selkirk replied with tries from Darren Hulme and Bruce Armstrong, plus a Michael McVie penalty and
conversion. However, by then the visitors had wrapped up the points... and top spot in the division.
SELKIRK ‘A’ — D. Hulme, D. Reive, T. Cove, B. Armstrong,
T. Walling, M. Easson, M. McVie, G. Kinghorn, H. McDonald, A. Johnston (rep. J. McDonald; rep. A. Waldron), A.
White, J. Pretswell, K. Connor (rep. A. Bell), B. Hoggan, W. Gentleman (rep. R. Conway).
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