| Position | Team | Played | W | D | L | F : A | Diff. | Bonus | Points | ||
| 1 | Lasswade RFC | 22 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 721:190 | 531 | 16 | 92 | ||
| 2 | Waysiders Drumpellier RFC | 22 | 15 | 2 | 5 | 447:324 | 123 | 7 | 71 | ||
| 3 | Trinity Academicals RFC | 22 | 14 | 1 | 7 | 422:225 | 197 | 10 | 68 | ||
| 4 | Allan Glen's RFC | 22 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 569:400 | 169 | 9 | 65 | ||
| 5 | Marr RFC | 22 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 434:403 | 31 | 9 | 53 | ||
| 6 | Helensburgh RFC | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 389:268 | 121 | 10 | 52 | ||
| 7 | Gordonians RFC | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 321:376 | -55 | 9 | 49 | ||
| 8 | Ross High RFC | 22 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 395:596 | -201 | 7 | 49 | ||
| 9 | Lenzie RFC | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 307:329 | -22 | 6 | 48 | ||
| 10 | R | Strathmore RFC | 22 | 9 | 0 | 13 | 385:359 | 26 | 10 | 46 | |
| 11 | R | Lismore RFC | 22 | 5 | 0 | 17 | 235:478 | -243 | 5 | 25 | |
| 12 | R | Grangemouth Stags RFC | 22 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 149:826 | -677 | 3 | 11 | |
First XV Page 2009/10
Scottish Cup Blairgowrie Ten's
Scottish Hydro Electric National League Division 3 2008/2009
Date
Kick Off
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Report
August 2008
Saturday 30th 3:00pm Grangemouth 5 - 38 Strathmore Report September 2008 Saturday 6th 3:00pm Strathmore 74 - 0 Ross High Report Saturday 13th 3:00pm Gordonians 17 - 12 Strathmore Report Saturday 20th 3:00pm Strathmore 39 - 17 Allan Glen's Report Saturday 27th 3:00pm Trinity Academicals 12 - 37 Strathmore Report October 2008
Saturday 4th 3:00pm Strathmore 16 - 6 Lismore Report Saturday 11th 3:00pm Lenzie P - P Strathmore 16/11 Saturday 18th 3:00pm Strathmore 16 - 19 Helensburgh Saturday 25th 3:00pm Strathmore 12 - 14 Lasswade November 2008
Saturday 1st 2:00pm Waysiders Drumpellier 31 - 3 Strathmore Saturday 8th 2:00pm Strathmore 34 - 19 Marr Sunday 16th 2:00pm Lenzie 14 - 3 Strathmore Saturday 22nd 2:00pm Strathmore P - P Grangemouth Saturday 29th 2:00pm Ross High 21 - 3 Strathmore Report December 2008
Saturday 6th 2:00pm Strathmore P - P Gordonians Saturday 13th 2:00pm Allan Glen's 14 - 0 Strathmore Report January 2009
Saturday 17th 2:00pm Strathmore 0 - 10 Trinity Academicals Saturday 24th 2:00pm Lismore 12 - 14 Strathmore Report Saturday 31st 2:00pm Strathmore 9 - 3 Lenzie Report February 2008 Saturday 7th 2:00pm Helensburgh P - P Strathmore Sunday 1st 3:00pm Strathmore P - P Gordonians Saturday 7th 3:00pm Lasswade 34 - 6 Strathmore Saturday 14th 3:00pm Strathmore 21 - 22 Waysiders Drumpellier Report Saturday 21st 3:00pm Strathmore 29 - 5 Grangemouth Stags Report Saturday 28th 3:00pm Marr 46 - 10 Strathmore
April 2009 Saturday 11th 3:00pm Helensburgh 21 - 0 Strathmore Report Saturday 18th 3:00pm Strathmore 5 - 15 Gordonians Report
Strathie win Bowl @ Blairgowrie
It was a hard afternoon for the 'Black's' with an opening match against the Fijian Marines from RAF Condor in which they were narrowly defeated. They then raised their game to see off hosts Blairgowrie and Highland. When the Fijian's were defeated by Premier 1 team Watsonians that gave Starthie a chance to win the tournament for the second year in a row. New coach Dave Brown enthused the players and had them well drilled for the game but the power and size of the players from a team in the top flight of Scottish rugby was to much for the 'Blacks' who were, in this game, unable to score. They did get close and there were some tremendous efforts which will give a lot of confidence to players as they prepare for the visit of Mackie Academy FP's on the 16th of this month.
Captain Disco Stu covets the Bowl!!
National League Division 3
2008/9
Strathmore 12 - 14 Lasswade
The game was televised by Scottish Rugby Television, buy the DVD or watch the highlights. Thanks to Jason for building the Scaffolding.
Grangemouth 5 - 38 Strathmore
This was a bit of a trip into the unknown, as Grangemouth had dropped in to Division 3 after a fairly rapid plunge from Premier 3. It was safe to assume that they would be determined to halt the slide, but we were also hoping for more of last season's late form that blew away the opposition in the last 3 home games to avoid relegation.
The first half was fairly evenly contested, though we looked fitter, faster and more organised. A Jamie McLaren penalty gave us a 3-0 lead after 25 minutes, but this was followed by an unconverted Grangemouth try to give the home side a 5-3 lead at the interval.
It was all Strathie in the second half. A try from Jason Leslie, just about back to his irresistible best, started the onslaught, and further scores came from Kiwi Mike Purser (2), Dave Hull and Jamie McLaren. The full back converted all five for a personal tally of 18 points, and there was almost a sixth try from Calum MacLean, but the young winger crossed the line at such speed that he was over the dead ball line before e touched down!
A fantastic result to which everyone contributed, no-one more than Sarel du Plessis at inside centre who was hugely influential and did everything but score - another shrewd acquisition!
Strathmore 74- 0 Ross High
Report by John Westwood
Strathmore last played Ross High in 1993 and suffered a record humbling in Tranent as the blacks plummeted towards relegation. The roles were reversed on Saturday as a weakened away side was swept aside at a blustery Inchmacoble Park.
With two league games played and the blacks sitting proudly at the top of National League Division Three they will need to guard against complacency but with the commitment of these players and the coaching staff, hopefully this will be avoided as the hard work continues .
Coach Dave Brown has stressed the importance of containing sides that are in the ascendency, and this has been a key improvement within the side from last season. The defence was particularly impressive, the back row inspired throughout, turning the ball over at will.
Within the fifteen, combinations are now tried and tested with players trusting team mates to make the right options at the right time. With experienced players like Leslie and Westwood returning to full fitness after a year out, there is a greater depth of nous within the squad that was maybe lacking in the previous campaign.
It is ironic however that a combination that has been together for only three games looks like the strongest unit within the team. Sarel Du Plessis and Colin Strachan have already formed a devastating centre pairing, both exploiting their power and pace to the full in attack and providing a brick wall defence in the midfield.
Strachan seems to have shoulders hewn out of granite, one tackle in particular saw an opponent getting a birds eye view of the Inchmacoble turf before being smashed into the lush surface.
The first score was always going to be crucial in settling the blacks into their rhythmn and it came in five minutes after concerted pressure on the visitors line.
A lightning break from Gary Wood set up the chance which was pounced on by the ever present blind side flanker Jamie Wilson for a great team score. Full back McLaren added the conversion to his earlier penalty and the blacks assumed total control which they never looked like relinquishing.
Worse was to follow for the visitors as they lost one of their forwards in a clash of heads with Westwood. Hospital treatment was required for a badly broken nose and all at Strathmore wish the player a speedy recovery.
Strathie should have added to their score moments later but a rash of handling errors let their opponents off the hook. It took a burst from McLaren to inspire his team as the burly full back ran through the Ross High defence only to have the ball stripped from his grasp over the line.
A classic scrummage move led to the next score through right wing Calum McLean before Jesuit flanker Colin Bell opened his account with a fantastic solo effort that saw him waltz through some bemused would be tacklers.
McLean then crossed from the next attack, a burst of pace saw him blast past his opposite number for the finest try of the opening half. McLaren converted the last of these tries and Strathie had a comfortable twenty seven point lead at the interval.
Coach Dave Brown wanted more of the same in the second period and set the goal of two more tries into a strong easterly wind. The blacks ended up crossing the whitewash a further seven times in a totally dominant display that saw the visitors penned in their half from the kick off.
Lion-hearted second row Stuart Gray epitomised the Strathie effort with an eighty minutes of perpetual motion that certainly enhanced his burgeoning reputation. With the dominance provided by the front five it meant the blacks were always on the front foot and the back line began to cut loose.
The front row provided great scrum ball and though conditions made the lineout a lottery the homesters shaded that area of play as well.
Stand off Purser opened the account in second forty with a slalom like run that saw two defenders comprehensively sidestepped. His score was just rewards for his determination to get fit after a horror knee injury at the end of the last campaign.
This try seemed to open the floodgates as the visitors defence resembled Swiss cheese. Supersub Matt Marshall showed fast feet and dazzling speed as he crossed over for a couple of tries, emphasising that the blacks have depth to their squad.
Du Plessis also showed a turn of pace when he crossed for his brace and it was interesting to note the confidence with which he played stand off when Purser went off with a slight knock. The South Africans centre partner Strachan then burst over for another five pointer moments later to underline his fine exhibition of back play.
It was fitting that the final score should fall to the most influential player as Colin Bell became the fourth player to score two tries just before full time. His ball pilfering skills are on a par with the Artful Dodger of Dickensian fame but unlike the Victorian urchin, Bell is as humble and as pleasant an individual as one could hope to meet.
McLaren converted six of the seven second half tries to finish with a personal tally of nineteen points in an impressive display of ball striking.
With Leslie, Sim, Nicol, Bowman and Bruce to return to the fray the squad will travel in good spirits to Aberdeen where newly promoted Gordonians will provide the sternest test so far.
Strathmore : J McLaren, D Hull, C Strachan, S Du Plessis, C McLean, M Purser, G Wood, A Dalgerno, G Merrie, G Strachan, S Gray, J Westwood, J Wilson, C Bell, D Atchison.
Subs : L Thomson, C Nicol, M Marshall.
Gordonians 17 - 12 Strathmore
A dour miserable day, and it wasn't just the weather. The blacks failed to stamp their authority on the Gordonian pack who took full advantage of a lacklustre Strathie performance to open up a half time lead. Dave Brown laid down the law during the half time team talk and it looked like it worked as Strathie scored from whistle to get themselves back in the game. They got close to the win but gave away a soft penalty which was converted by the hosts to seal the victory. A poor day at the office for the Blacks who will need to raise their game if they want any hope of defeating Allan Glen's next week.
Strathmore 39 - 17 Allan Glens
Report by John Westwood
Strathmore bounced back from last weeks turgid display against Gordonians in Aberdeen with a six try demolition of a youthful fifteen from Bishopbriggs. In truth the home side should have scored another half a dozen and such profligacy could prove costly in the coming weeks.
Crisper handling would have secured a bonus point before the break but a lack of composure cost the homesters dear. The only other negative was the manner in which the two tries were conceded. First up tackles were missed, although the first Glen's try relied on the type of solo brilliance that had the home supporters applauding the effort from the opponents left winger.
It was the away side that opened the scoring with a penalty, awarded when Strathie killed the ball in front of the posts. The remainder of the half saw the blacks dominate possession and territory without really using it to the full.
Skipper Graham Merrie did batter over from five metres, benefitting from a pop pass from veteran forward John Westwood but in truth their dominance deserved more. Merrie's line out throwing was exemplery throughout and this gave the flow to the homesters attacks.
Jamie McLaren then banged over a penalty to stretch the lead to five on the half hour mark. With the clock ticking down it was South African Sarrel Du Plessis who provided the timely injection of class as he motored through the defence and under the posts for a pivotal score. McLaren added the extras to give the blacks a filip as the half time whistle blew.
Strathie lost the momentum from the restart, the visitor's winger producing that moment of magic to score from fully eighty metres out to bring his side back into the contest. His quality and pace caused the home defence problems in the second half but his efforts proved in vain as he failed to inspire his pack to greater efforts.
The blacks replied almost immediately with a well worked line out move that gave the ball to the rampaging Kiwi Jason Leslie ten metres from the line. It looked like the bulky South Islander had an invisible rubber suit on as he bounced off numerous defenders before crossing the whitewash.
Five minutes later and the contest was over as David Hull finished a fantastic team score that went through several phases and showed the abilty in the squad when they keep their composure.
With the bonus point secured the floodgates threatened to open but mistakes again crept into the
blacks play. The inspirational Jamie Wilson had one of his finest matches in a black shirt and his driving efforts together with the rest of the pack kept the supply of ball flooding towards their backs.
Du Plessis capped another fine performance with his second try, sniffing out another gap in the Glen's backline before accelerating past the defence for his sides fifth try. Glen's clawed a try back with the home defence culpable once again with their toothless first up tackling.
Strathie ended up back on the offensive and crossed the line once more through the evergreen Atholl Bowman. The tough tackling full back took a glorious pass from Hull as he burst through a hole in the tiring Glen's ranks to canter over in the right corner. McLaren converted two of the second half tries to complete the resounding home victory.
Trinity will be a bigger challenge for the blacks but one they should relish, especially if the passes start to stick and the forwards secure as much ball.
Strathmore : E Payne, C MacLean, D Hull, S DuPlessis, M Marshall, J McLaren, G Wood, A Dalgarno, G Merrie, G Strachan, S Gray, J Leslie, J Wilson, C Bell, J Westwood.
Subs : D Atchison, L Thomson, A Bowman.
Trinity Academiacls 12 - 37 Strathmore
The 5 points resulted from 5 tries from Arran Dalgaro and Colin Strachan in the first half, with Jamie McLaren adding a conversion and 2 penalties for a half time score of 20-0.
Some more vintage rugby followed after the break, with further tries from Ed Payne, Jamie McLaren (for the bonus point) and Sarel du Plessis, with McLaren converting his own try. Concentration wavered in the final 5 minutes when Accies were allowed to score 2 consolation tries.
Strathmore 16 - 6 Lismore
Report by John Westwood
There is an art to winning ugly and Strathie seem to have learned that art if Saturday's performance is anything to go by. It was a flat and insipid display that was hard to explain after last weeks pyrotechnics against Trinity. The conditions may have played a part as the surface was greasy and the ball was like the proverbial bar of soap but some of the handling was so awful that even a wet day couldn't take all of the blame.
The blacks played too much rugby in their own half and when they were turned over found themselves under unnecessary pressure. This lack of game management proved frustrating for the players and supporters alike. The standard of kicking was also very poor, with more slices on show than at the last Strathmore golf outing.
The effort that was expended by the squad should not be under estimated, perspiration and not inspiration was the order of the day and the blacks forwards just shaded the arm wrestle with the pack from Edinburgh. Lismore defended with great organisation throughout, a number of crunching tackles repelling Strathie backwards when scores seemed certain in the opening twenty minutes.
In Colin Bell, Strathmore's all action flanker, we had the best player on the park by quite some distance. His eighty minutes of ball winning and surging runs helped his side when they needed him most, a sign of his growing maturity and stature within the team.
Skipper Graeme Merry led by example, taking the ball into contact with aggression as he strived to inspire his charges. He has achieved a level of consitency this season that gives confidence to his teammates which is all you can ask of any captain.
The visitors opened the scoring with a penalty which was against the run of play but summed up Strathie's day as they blew two gilt edged opportunities to cross the whitewash.
Within minutes of this setback the blacks had taken the lead. Great work from Colin Strachan left the visitors line wide open. The ball was passed to the left and Irish full back Ed Payne sprinted past the covering defence for a great team score. Gary Wood narrowly missed the conversion attempt.
Wood stretched the lead with a penalty after Lismore were caught offside at a ruck but two more chances were lost thanks to poor handling and decision making. It could have been worse had Matt Marshall not made a fantasic covering tackle to snuff out a dangerous attack.
Strathmore started the second half with more vigour and energy and had their opponents camped in the twenty two under severe pressure. Wood kicked another penalty but this was cancelled almost immediately after a Lismore breakout was stopped illegally.
The game was made safe on the hour mark with another great team try. Scrum half Wood made a break and fed Payne who offloaded quickly to the supporting Merrie. The bulky hooker smashed over from five metres to give the blacks a cushion that they needed.
With fifteen minutes to go the visiting left wing took a dislike to Matt Marshall and a flurry of punches was followed by a red card. This was out of place in a hard fought but fair eighty minutes and Marshall showed great discipline by not retaliating.
This month will prove if promotion is possible this season but already with five wins by October, last years struggles seem a distant memory.
Strathmore : E Payne, M Marshall, C Strachan, S Du Plessis, D Hull, M Purser, G Wood, A Dalgarno, G Merrie, L Thomson, S Gray, J Westwood, J Wilson, C Bell, D Atchison.
Subs : B Morrice, K Mollison, G Nicoll.
Top
Ross High 23 - 3 Strathmore
The Blacks' recent run of bad results continued at a frosty Tranent where the fired up home team proved too strong for a Strathmore team who failed to take advantage of the few opportunities they were offered and who were forced into too many basic errors.
Ross High were clearly out to make amends for the 70 point drubbing they received when they sent a clearly under-strength side to Forfar back in September, and early pressure, helped by basic errors from the visitors, produced 2 simple penalty chances in front of the posts for a 6-0 home lead.
Strathie at last managed to put the opposition under some pressure in their own half, resulting in a penalty chance for McLaren, and the big full back made no mistake, bringing the score back to 6-3.
The intensity of the forward battle had seen Strathie's "iron man" Craig Sim leave the field with an injury in the 16th minute, and this gave prop Darrell Lindsay a chance for his first appearance of the season since returning from a season "down under".
Ross High upped their game for the remainder of the first half, and were rewarded with a try in the corner. The conversion attempt failed, giving the home side an 11-3 lead at the interval.
Coach Dave Brown rung the changes, bringing Gary Robb on at stand-off, with Mike Purser moving to full back and McLaren retiring to the subs' bench. A early break by du Plessis saw Purser stopped just short, but the home side won the ensuing lineout and cleared their lines.
Sim returned to the fray after five minutes of the second half, but it was the home side's turn to apply the pressure, and after being stopped just short of the line, the Ross High number 10 scored an excellent try, touching down under the posts for an easy conversion.
It was skipper Merry's turn to join the injury list, going off with a back problem, and shortly after this, Brown substituted Payne and Strachan with McLaren and Hyland, the latter making his first appearance for the blacks.
The home side never looked like relinquishing their lead after that, and rubbed salt into the wounds with a massive penalty from just inside the Strathie half for the final score of the game.
Despite losing five out of the last six matches, the blacks are still in fourth place in what is turning out to be a highly competitive and unpredictable league. They must be looking to secure as many points as possible from their remaining home fixtures, with the first one coming this Saturday with the visit of Gordonians, the Aberdeen side currently on a winning streak after a relatively poor start to the season.
Team: McLaren, Marshall, Strachan, du Plessis, Payne: Purser, Wood: Sim, Merry, Dalgarno, Gray, Leslie, Bell, Wilson, Aitchison. Subs: Lindsay, Robb, Hyland.
Alan Glen's 14 - 0 Strathmore
Another dour game for the Blacks which they could have won had they been able to find away through a well organised Glen's defence. The Blacks were well in control in the forward department but the kicking through in the first half just gave the ball away, towards the end of the second half a change of tactics some quick taps from penalties which gained yardage and twice the blacks were within touching distance. The referee's watch broke down and he called time a clear 5 minutes early which did not help our cause!
Lismore 12 - 14 Strathmore
This match was billed as a Golden Oldies Day Out minus the coloured shorts, last week the teams average age was under 20 but this week saw that rise just a little with the return of Mike Bruce, Iain Fletcher, Jason Leslie and John Westwood.
The tactical decision of Merry to play into the wind and up the hill looking directly into the bright low sunshine gave Lismore the edge in the fist half which they dominated and were unlucky not have two tries, one from a break through called back by the referee and the other well defended by the Blacks, they went in 12 - 0 at half time after taking advantage of 4 of the 5 penalties conceded by the Blacks.
The second half started well when Garry Wood breaking through to score for the Blacks within a few minutes of the restart the Lismore heads went down and they only got into the Black 22 on 3 occasions. The Blacks continued to put pressure on the Lismore defence who conceded two penalties in the last 5 minutes, Jamie McLaren missed the first but converted the last with just a minute remaining on the clock much to the relief of the travelling support.
Next week Lenzie come to visit, on the last occasion they put 22 points past us with no reply and this season they beat us 14 - 3 in a game which was much closer than the score would suggest so this weeks game should prove to be another cracker.
Strathmore 9 - 3 Lenzie
A desperate run of games that saw us plummet from 2nd to 7th place has been arrested by 2 hard fought victories in the last 2 games. Last week's last gasp win against lowly Lismore was bettered by a thoroughly well-deserved home victory against Lenzie.
With the back line still missing several key players, this was always going to be a game that would be won by forward domination, and the Blacks' pack did not disappoint on the day. With man of the match Stuart Gray leading by example, and Colin Bell, grateful to find himself back in the familiar number 7 shirt after a couple of games at centre, showing us all how invaluable he is in the back row, the Lenzie backs had few chances to make their mark on the game.
When they did threaten, the old centre pairing of Fletcher and Crozier, now at the pipe and slippers stage of their careers, showed that their defence was as sound as ever, and also showed glimpses of their former attacking prowess when given a yard of space.
It was a former junior star, Dave Brown (no relation to our illustrious coach), who earned the victory on the back of the forward effort. Making his first start of the season, Dave quickly showed the large home crowd that his prodigious left boot had lost none of it's ability after a few years of golf, and after a series of lengthy touch kicks he put over a monster penalty from the halfway line (with room to spare) jut 4 minutes from half-time. Another followed just before the break to give a 6-0 lead to the home side.
In the second half, persistent offending from the visitors saw the rare sight of a red card resulting from 2 yellows for one of the visitors, and a wild punch from one of the Lenzie props led to another red. Faced with only 13 opponents for the final 20 minutes, one might have thought that this would give the home side the chance to secure the win, but the opposition threw everything into the attack, gambling on the pace of their backs to secure victory.
In the event, they did manage to put over a penalty, but it was stand-off Dave Brown's day, with the youngster popping over a neat drop goal with only minutes to go.
Strathmore 21 - 22 Waysiders Drumpelier
A very windy afternoon with the wind blowing right down the pitch west to east. Strathmore started with wind advantage, but failed to use the conditions with too many naive kicks from their own half clearing the opposition's dead ball line.
Waysiders opened the scoring with a converted try in the 15th minute, but Strathie stand-off Dave Brown pulled back 3 points with a penalty 10 minutes later.
Slick handling resulted in the visitors scoring another try in the right corner to make it 3-12, but a good spell of pressure from the home side saw scrum half Gary Wood steal the ball from an opposition scrum to put Gary Robb in for an unconverted try to make the score 8-12. Dave Brown made the most of the wind advantage with a 40 minute penalty to make the half-time score 11-12 in favour of the visitors.
With most of the crowd expecting the Coatbridge side to use the wind to their advantage in the second half, it was a rejuvenated Strathie XV who took the game to their opponents and made clever use of their driving forwards to gain ground and create space. Although the visitors notched an early penalty, the home side surged down the right hand touchline for captain for the day Jamie Wilson to plunge over for a try that made the score 16-15 in favour of the home side.
15 minutes later, after a period of intense pressure on the visitors' line, scrum half Gary Wood plunged over for a 3rd try to make it 21-15 to the delight of the home crowd.
It looked as this was to remain the final score until the visitors took advantage of a missed tackle on the 22 to allow the number 13, who had threatened all afternoon, to score under the posts, with the simple conversion taking the points away from the despairing home side.
3 tries each was proof that there was nothing separating these 2 sides, and on reflection the home side will rue missed opportunities to consolidate their position in the league.
Team: G Robb, J McLaren, C Strachan, D Hull, M Marshall; D Brown, G Wood; A Dalgarno, B Morrice, D Lindsay, S Gray, G Watson, J Wilson. C Bell, J Westwood. Subs: C Sim, K Mollison, G Crozier.
Strathmore 29 - 5 Grangemouth
A superb try by Matt Marshall 5 minutes into the game - given a narrow corridor on the right hand touchline - streaked through.
The Grangemouth stand-off exploited a gap to equal the score 10 minutes later, but the conversion was missed and that was the last of their challenge.
Winger Malcolm Lamont scored try number 2, converted by Gary Robb, and Bruce Morrice showed quick thinking by taking a quick tap penalty to score under the posts for another Robb conversion. Half time score 19 - 5.
In the second half, the home side had all the pressure but little to show for it. They went to sleep in the third quarter, but with the re-introduction of Jason Leslie, the result was in no doubt. First ex-colt Stu Gray crashed over for the bonus try, and then Leslie himself powered through for the fifth - a try that few defences in the country would have been able to prevent!
Helensburgh 21 - 0 StrathmoreStrathie had the bulk of possession during both half's but could not convert the pressure into points. Helensburgh capitalised on Black's errors for a win which secured their status in the national leagues.
Strathie now face an uphill battle against a Gordonians side who have found form with two convincing wins in a row thumping Ross High 45 - 3 and Lenzie 41 - 0.
It's the last game of the season and a big home crowd could make all the difference in vocally supporting the team as we welcome Gordonians for what has all the ingredients for a good match.
Strathmore 7 - 15 Gordonians
A stern defensive job by Gordonians and two good tries from the wings saw them safe after the Blacks had two tries held up in the first twenty minutes. The Black's had their chances though - 7 missed penalties on a day with only a gentle breeze. The match was as expected close and hard, Merry's men battled all the way to the end and came close on several occasions but could just not convert possession into points through in the second half.
Scottish Cup
Strathmore 3 - 30 East Kilbride RFC
Strathmore 3 - 50 Haddington RFCIt was a tough 8 days for the blacks as they met Premier 2 side Haddington and National 1 side East Kilbride in the cup and shield. In both games the blacks matched their opponents for strength and competed well and enjoyed long periods of domination but could not penetrate staunch defences. It was the oppositions faster pace which proved to be the downfall in both cases.
Out but not down hearted by the performances, captain Merry must now invigorate his men for the tough trip to league runaway leaders Lasswade. There were only two points in it at the home game so the Strathie men can go into this full of confidence.
Aberdeenshire 10 - 15 Strathmore
Strathmore chose the ideal occasion to get back to wining form with a 15-10 victory in the 3rd round of the Scottish Cup against Aberdeenshire at Woodside. The encounters between these two sides have always produced close results in recent years, no more so than in 2006-07, when the Forfar side won 29-27, having been 27-0 down at half-time, and went on to win the league and promotion to national status.
Try scorers on this occasion were two of the younger members of the side, stand-off Gary Robb and centre Colin Strachan, with one conversion and a penalty from Jamie McLaren.
The prize for this much-needed win is a 4th round home tie rescheduled for February 14th against Premier 2 side Haddington.
