EDINBURGH EVENING NEWS REPORTS
COLIN RENTON AT MEGGETLAND
Scotland clubs 18
Ireland clubs 11

DELIGHTED Scotland skipper Tam McVie has pointed to last night's stunning 18-11 win for the hosts in the rugby club international against Ireland at Meggetland as proof that the sport is thriving at the grass roots level.

The 31 year old, who was leading the side for the second time, was effusive in his praise of his colleagues, who gave a performance that was brimming with character and a triumph for the Capital's sides.

"It was superb," said the Heriot's star, whose contribution earned him the man of the match award. "I thought it was a fantastic advert for club rugby.

If you can't get people coming to watch clubs after that then I don't know what it will take."

Played in front of a vociferous 1112 crowd, the match started badly for the Scots, who struggled to match the pace, strength and organisation of the visitors and fell behind to two early penalties by stand off Andrew Thompson.

"The Irish team are no mugs," said McVie. "They played English Counties a couple of weeks ago and won."

However, where he felt the Scots had laid the foundations for the win was in their refusal to buckle in the face of that early onslaught.

"The first 20 minutes showed that they'd had a wee bit more match practice but they only got six points out of it. The boys just stuck to their guns and didn't panic and just kept at them."

Glasgow Hawks stand off Murray Strang halved the deficit when he hammered over a long-range penalty as the Scots came to terms with the pace of the game but they were undone by a slick move that allowed Richard McCarter to race over for the opening try.

Strang missed with his next penalty attempt but the Scots ended the first half in the ascendancy and they struck what proved to be the crucial blow when centre Graham Thomson made an incisive break and, faced with two defenders, chipped ahead for McVie's Heriot's colleague Marc Teague to gather and plunge over the line. That left the hosts just three points adrift at the break.

"I think that was the turning point," said McVie. "We had been millimetres away from scoring and I was just trying to say to the guys that we weren't far away from it, and if we just kept ticking over it would come.

"Then when we came out again we knew we had it. We were strong in defence. We knew they would drive everything and we just worked hard to hit them."

That proved to be the case and, where they had toiled in the set piece during the first half, the Scots started to dominate in all aspects and, when they disrupted the Irish scrum after 53 minutes, scrum half AJ McFarlane fed Boroughmuir skipper Rory Couper, who delighted the home crowd by racing up the left flank to score.

A tenuous two-point lead was still the difference as the game entered the final minutes and, with the Irish raising their game, the Scots again revealed their steel to repel a fresh wave of attacks before Watsonians hooker Steve Lawrie displayed impressive pace and awareness to get on the end of a breakout from deep in the Scottish half to bag the crucial try.

"I'm over the moon. It's great to get revenge", said McVie, who had suffered defeat at the hands of the same opponents last season.

"We've only been together for a week and a bit. The team gelled very quickly. We were under so much pressure for 30 minutes but the boys just kept their heads and it just goes to show the quality of guys we had playing for us."

George Breckenridge, the assistant coach, who fulfils the same role at Heriot's, could barely contain his delight at the way his side had overcome the odds.

He said, "It was a very courageous performance - a lot of guts, determination and will to win by the players and, let's face it, we were under the cosh in the first 25 minutes. It was fantastic. I am absolutely thrilled. It was true Scottish passion. I hope Frank Hadden's players read the press and see that the club international team did a job."

Sadly for Breckenridge and McVie, the bid for further Heriot's success foundered when head coach Bob McKillop saw his Under 20 side succumb 31-8 to their Irish counterparts at Falkirk.

A penalty by Edinburgh apprentice Cammy Ferguson tied the scores at 3-3 at half-time but all the Scots had to show for their second-half efforts was a try by Stewart's Melville back-rower Richie Vernon.

Scotland: Thompson (Heriot's), Teague (Heriot's), Thomson (Dundee High), Houston (Heriot's), Couper (Boroughmuir), Strang (Glasgow Hawks), McFarlane (Ayr), McNeil (Hawick), Lawrie (Watsonians), Higgins (Melrose), Kelly (Ayr), Adam (Currie), McVie (Heriot's), Martyn (Boroughmuir), Fisher (Boroughmuir). Subs: Kelly (GHA), Cairns (Currie), Goodall (Heriot's).

Ireland: McCarter, O'Brien, Hartigan, Telford, Healy, Thompson, O'Loughlin, O'Donnell, Corrigan, Shawe, O'Connell, Maher, Malone, Hartigan, Cogan. Subs: Crawford, Bruce, Hennessey, Keesham, Nolan 73, Finn.

Scorers: Scotland:Tries: Teague; Couper; Lawrie. Penalty: Strang. Ireland: Try: McCarter. Penalties Thompson (2).

This article was posted on 11-Mar-2007, 08:34 by Hugh Barrow.