| Dalziel 1st XV: | 17 |
| Hawick YM: | 23 |
Shield game @ Mansfield Park, 4/4/09Hawick YMs victory earned them an away quarter final tie against former Premier One & Scottish Cup winners Glasgow Hawks. Dalziel could have won the cup tie but basic schoolboy errors cost Dalziel 15 points. Prior to leaving the dressing room minutes before kick off Dalziels coach Jimmy Sinclair gave his players a stirring team talk conveying to them individually and collectively what they needed to do to win the match. Unfortunately Dalziel did not play to the agreed team plan and this basically was the reason for the defeat.
Having won the toss Dalziel elected to play with the very strong wind blowing directly down the park and for the first fifteen minutes Dalziel were encampled in the home teams half but despite all the pressure they did not record any points. Andy Hills penalty was carried just wide off the posts. Hawick weathered the onslaught and started to create problems for Dalziel. Their backs ran straight and their handling was such that both their wingers started to make big inroads into the Dalziel half. A Dalziel forward was penalised for handling in a ruck and the home full back hit a difficult penalty into the strong wind. In twenty seven minutes Dalziel were awarded a penalty when a Hawick forward held on to the ball when tackled in the Dalziel twenty two. Instead of using the strong wind to kich the ball to safety stand off Ross McCaulay took a quick tap penalty and ran 15 metres before being tackled. Because he had no support he in turn was penalised for holding onto the ball and this time Hawick took a quick penalty passing the ball out wide stretching the Dalziel defence. The ball then came back inside and when it reached the Hawick centre there was a hugh gap that he crashed through to score unopposed.Fortunately the full back missed the conversion.
Five minutes before half time the home side scored an excellent try. From a ruck the ball was fed to the left winger who sped past his opposite number. He then chipped the oncoming full back and sprinted past the Dalziel player to touch down in the corner.
A penalty by Andy Hill secured Dalziels first points then on the stroke of half time Dalziel scored a try. Dalziel won a scrum twenty five metres from the Hawick line. No. 8 Craig Simmonds picked up and barged through two tackles before passing to replacement scrum half Ross Donnachie who jinxed his way past two bewildered defenders to score under the posts to give Andy Hill the easiest of conversions. From down and out five minutes before half time Dalziel went into the break only three points behind the home team.
Immediately on the restart the home team started using the wind to good effect peppering kicks deep inside the Dalziel half however the Dalzel defence was on top form and was coping with the Hawick attack. A moment of madness by full back Fraser Duguid caused Dalziel more grief. From forty metres out the home full back attempted a long range drop goal but the wind carried the ball wide and dead. Fraser took a quick drop out but the ball was fielded by the home full back who with plenty of time positioned himself and this time his kick went between the uprights.
With fifteen minutes to go Dalziel took the lead for the first time in the match when having been awarded a penalty they went for touch rather than go for the points they so badly needed. The lineout was won and the forwards drove for the line. After nine or ten phases of play Criag Lewis broke loose and fed Ross Donnachie who in turn passed to wing forward who ran in from five metres to score close to the posts and again Hill hit the conversion. This was the type of rugby Dalziel needed to play with the forwards taking it on and playing it tight. However another error was to prove the final nail in the coffin for Dalziel. Winger Lee McWhinnie fielded a high ball deep in his own twety two area. He turned and passed to his full back who by this time had come up to support the winger expecting him to launch an all out attack. The ball bobbled in the in goal area and looked as if it was going dead but the Hawick wing forward was adjudged to have touched it down before it went over the dead ball line. The conversion put the home team six points ahead with five minutes to go.
The Dalziel forwards again took the play deep into the Hawick half. When the ball was fed wide Dalziel had an overlap situation but winger Vic Czarnoki was tackled closed to the line as he went for the score close to the posts. The same player came very close with the last touch of the ball. Again the ball was fed wide and from five metres out Vic sprinted for the line and in diving over he brushed the corner flag when scoring the try but joy turned to despair when the referee had a discussion with his neutral touch judge who said Vics foot was in touch as he dived for the line but why then did he not raise his flag? It would have been a very difficult conversion attempt but Dalziel were not given the try and the ref blew for full time.
If Dalziel had played to their coaches instruction and palyed it tight in the forwards then they would have been making the short joutney into Glasgow for a quarter final tie against the Hawks. THey didnt and are now out of the cup.
Dalziel are away to Cambuslang this Saturday and a huge victory is the number one priority. Team:
Barry Turnbull, Robert Simpson, Lee McWhinnie, Andy McLaren, Ross McAuley, Andy Hill, Gillon Duguid, Fraser Duguid, Ross Donnachie, Victor Czarnocki, Blake Whitehead, Kris Watters, George Sloan, Craig Simmonds, Craig Lewis, Steven Findlay, Steven Clowes, Paul Beer, Stephen Baird, Ian Adams Scorers:
Tries: Blake Whitehead, Ross Donnachie
Conversions: Andy Hill (2)
Penalties: Andy Hill
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