Perthshire crash to Hamilton

Oct 22 2010 by Johnathon Menzies, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

Perthshire 19 Hamilton 50

THIS was a day to forget for the Eagles. Not only did they suffer a hefty defeat but they will now probably lose Adam Pattinson after a rush of blood saw him red-carded.

The game started at a furious pace as both teams ran the ball at every opportunity but Hamilton went into an early lead when they won a line out and spun the ball out wide for Strydom to score in the corner.

Steele pulled three points back with a penalty but the game disintegrated into a series of penalties which saw Steele kick two but Hamilton converted three as Shire seemed to get penalised every time they went near the ball.

The referee eventually started issuing yellow cards and Neil Drummond was singled out for the enforced rest just before half time.

Just as it looked as though Shire would head into the interval with a respectable 9-14 scoreline Hamilton took full advantage of the depleted Shire forwards and powered over for their second try.

Steele banged over another penalty after half time and Shire tried to fight back.

A clever chip behind the Hamilton defence was chased up by the home backs but it was collected by Hamilton's Ross Inglis who skipped through four missed tackles to score. Shortly after this Shire were awarded a penalty in the Hamilton 22 but Pattinson retaliated when he was late tackled and illegally held and the referee had no option but to give him a red card and from then on Shire were put to the sword.

The penalty count mounted up as Shire became more and more indisciplined and it is clear that this is an area that needs drastic action.

Although they can feel aggrieved at some of the decisions going against them, they have to take some of the blame and play a more structured and disciplined game.

They gave away a total of 16 penalties which equates to one every five minutes and no team can win while doing this.

The game itself produced a total of 30 penalties and this dominated proceedings.

Hamilton thumped another penalty over and after winning yet more penalties on the Shire line the referee eventually awarded them a penalty try and the depleted Shire team could only look on as Hamilton proceeded to rack up 50 points.

Ryan Hood coming on as a replacement salvaged some pride when he led a tumultuous drive upfield and over the line but it was too little too late.

Perthshire's players and coaches must now regroup and start believing in themselves and get a playing pattern that suits this young mobile team.

Hamilton's jubilation at this victory was well deserved and protects their unbeaten record this season as they strive to reach Premier 2 but the Shire players can cling to some positives.

There is a host of young talent in the 1sts and 2nds who could form the backbone of a very strong club in a couple of years.

It was great to see the youth coaches and boys down giving their support. Derek O'Riordan and his team of SVQ's are taking the development side of the club to new levels and youth numbers are now starting to swell again.

All this bodes well for the future but it is the next couple of weeks which will determine Shire's season.

Wins against Howe of Fife and Dunfermline would be a great boost and the coaches must target at least five points from these two games if Shire are to move away from the danger zone.

Captain Ali Anderson looks set to return next week which will be a huge boost to the team.

The boys travel to Howe of Fife for a mouth watering local derby and cars will be taken to this game rather than bus.

The 2nd XV looked down and out at half time as they trailed Hamilton Seconds by 3-28 but a magnificent second half revival saw them score four tries for a bonus point although they eventually went down by 29 points to 52 to complete a miserable weekend for the Fair City club.

The 2nds travel to Biggar tomorrow with the bus leaving at noon.