Grangemouth Stags round off league campaign with a victory over Aberdeenshire

The visitors had won the previous fixture back in October and another tough match was expected.

With a number of regulars unavailable Grangemouth made a host of changes to the squad. Up front skipper McNab switched to hooker, Luke Quinn and McNiff were in the second row, while Nesbitt, White and Hind were in the back row. In the backs Hugh and Christie were in the centre with Ferguson, Kirkwood and Walsh filling the back three positions.

On a perfect day for rugby it was the home team who had the early possession to force the visitors into a goal line dropout. However Shire were quickly on the attack and on seven minutes a driving maul was initially collapsed and then held up. Nesbitt was given an early yellow for the collapse and from the resultant five metre scrum the Aberdeen number eight picked up to force his way over for a converted score.

The Stags tried to hit back but the visitors defence held firm before a great clearance kick by the Shire number nine who made 60 metres to pin the home side back in their 22. From another scrum pick up the inside pass cut through the Grangemouth defence for another converted score. A few minutes later Shire added their third score.

A run from their own half cut through a ragged home defence with the fullback collecting the scoring pass to run in under the sticks. A couple of injuries saw Harvey and Mowat come on in the centre.

The Stags were finally able to have some sustained possession in the opposition 22 and this forced the visitors into giving away frequent penalties at the breakdown. The Shire number eight received a team yellow card and Grangemouth looked to press home their numerical advantage. Harvey thought he had scored but the referee deemed he had made a double movement and the score was disallowed. A few minutes later White was close but the ball was knocked on and the chance was lost.

With the last play of the half Grangemouth attacked through numerous phases before the ball was moved wide. Hind was stopped just short but he managed to offload to Quinn who crashed over from close range. Skelton was unable to add the extras.

After the break, Grangemouth were back on the attack at the start of the second period. Christie was tackled just short of the line before another White carry and offload allowed Hind to dive in at the corner. Skelton was just short with the conversion attempt.

Shire continued to give away penalties at the breakdown and after a further warning their winger was given a yellow card for a high tackle on Kirkwood. The Stags kicked to the corner and a planned lineout move saw Nesbitt collect the short throw and score in the corner. Once again Skelton was unable to land the difficult kick.

The Stags then had to defend a spell of pressure from the visitors who used their driving maul to gain ground into the home 22. However they managed to survive this period unscathed and escaped upfield to look for a fourth score. Another carry by White saw Kirkwood and Nesbitt take play close to the line. Shire initially held out but a chip kick from Skelton was missed by the fullback and Nesbitt was on hand to collect the ball and canter in for the score. This time Skelton slotted the conversion to put the Stags ahead for the first time.

The visitors had a couple of minutes to try and retake the lead but a couple of dodgy lineout throws gave possession back to the home side and Skelton was able to clear to touch and the welcome sound of the final whistle.

This was quite a match. The Stags looked out of sorts in the opening 20 minutes but rolled up their sleeves to produce a very good comeback victory. There were strong performances throughout the side. The home back row of White, Nesbitt and Hind combined well while Harvey, Mowat and Ferguson all ran well with the ball in hand.

Grangemouth therefore finished in third position in the league - which has become dysfunctional and unsustainable. The club await the deliberations of the league committee to determine the possible league structure for next season.

Meanwhile the second XV finished the first half of their league season in fifth place and have four further fixtures in the next few weeks. This Saturday they travel to face Dunfermline’s second string with a 3pm kick-off.

Grangemouth Ladies travelled to face Peterhead last Saturday in the National Plate and secured an excellent 50-15 victory. That makes it two wins from two from their pool as they look to make the knockout semifinals. Their next fixture is away to Dunfermline on Saturday, 26 March.