Report courtesy of Robert Leslie of the Orkney Today
Orkney Rugby Club captain Glen McLellan rightly pronounced himself ‘the proudest man in Orkney today’ after leading his side in a performance which saw every man play to his full potential to give Premiership 2 side Selkirk a real fright.
Things may have looked ominous as the crowd of around 350–400 at Pickaquoy saw Selkirk full back Fraser Harkness score his first try in the fourth minute, but it was another 26 minutes before the visitors scored again, and the closing minutes of the first half saw Orkney pressing the Selkirk line, making so much of an impression that Selkirk captain Scott Jeffrey admitted that the possibility of defeat was in the back of his mind as he gave the half-time team talk.
It must have crossed his mind again when Orkney scored their only try of the game, through replacement forward Rob Thomson, early in the second half, however, a converted try in the 50th minute stretched the visitors’ lead again, and two later tries, one unconverted, sealed the victory for the side six divisions above Orkney.
With former Scotland and British Lions stand-off John Rutherford, now one of Selkirk’s junior vice-presidents, saying that the 33-5 scoreline flattered his team, Orkney’s players can be well pleased with their outstanding efforts.
The BT Cup third round tie kicked off sharp on 1pm at an almost windless but rain-threatened Pickaquoy infield pitch. The rain came in showers in the first half, but turned to a steady downpour for a while in the second 40 minutes.
Those arriving late – and long after the 250 programmes had sold out – might just have caught the first score of the game, as Selkirk full-back Fraser Harkness showed why he is his club’s top try scorer this season.
Selkirk scrum-half Michael McVie had already charged down a clearance kick following a scrum which Orkney had won inside their own 22. Though the ball went dead, it gave Selkirk good position and the next scrum saw Selkirk captain Scott Jeffrey, back after a long injury lay-off, pick up the ball and link with his full-back. The pace of Fraser Harkness may have caught the Orkney defence cold so early in the game, but his run in to score behind the posts looked frighteningly easy. Stand-off Michael Rutherford had no problems with the conversion.
A kick from Rutherford Jnr a few minutes later looked to have given Selkirk a great attacking position up the left – the visitors were playing towards Muddiesdale in the first half – but Orkney took a quick lineout and John Dearness kicked right back at them.
Orkney were having to play deep in their own half in this opening spell, but they were defending well, and this, combined with some unforced handling errors from the visitors, kept Selkirk at bay.
Selkirk got the ball to their backs from one scrum, but this time their full-back was well tackled and Andy McGill was almost away as Orkney gained possession. Orkney won the next scrum and kicked up to the Selkirk 10-metre line.
A penalty to Selkirk from around 25 metres could have extended their lead but Michael Rutherford’s kick was wide. Then the home crowd was roused as Orkney kicked into the Selkirk 22 and then got a bit of a drive on as they started to see a bit more of the ball. John Dearness had a run soon after but accidentally knocked on to give Selkirk the ball.
The flying visitors certainly knew they were in a game after the first 20 minutes and as Orkney won a penalty for handling in the ruck by Selkirk, the visiting coach was reprimanding his side for playing as individuals.
Orkney were under the cosh for a bit, but determined forward play thwarted any Selkirk scoring opportunities, and in 25 minutes James Linklater kicked a penatly to give Orkney a lineout five metres outside the Orkney 22, easing the pressure a bit.
A scrum gave Selkirk the
chance to get it out to their backs and they switched the ball from left to right and tried to get a drive on under the posts. Orkney held them up though, and also killed off any scoring chance from the resulting scrum.
However, Orkney could only hold out so long, and it was Michael Rutherford who eventually managed to sell the Orkney defence a dummy and go round behind the posts, giving himself the easiest of conversion kicks for a 14-0 lead on the half hour.
The final ten minutes of the half saw Orkney come into their best spell, with Andy McGill picking up from the back of a scrum in 34 minutes to make ground, Orkney retaining possession and winning a lineout just outside the Selkirk 22.
Glen McLellan then had a break, and as a ruck formed Orkney had the ball on the move, but play was halted for attention to Erland Hutchison.
Indiscipline in the Selkirk ranks saw Orkney gain 10 metres after winning a penalty. They built from this with a great rolling maul and then worked the ball across the field with John Dearness kicking into their 22 and putting the Selkirk defence under pressure. As half-time came it was Orkney putting the visitors under pressure and, though they were 14-0 up it was clear that the Selkirk coaches had the most to say at the break.
Their words did not have an immediate effect, but those of Orkney captain Glen McLellan did. He had told his side that Selkirk were ‘there for the taking. You might have started to believe it when five minutes into the half Andy McGill broke from the back of a scrum in midfield inside the Selkirk 22. He was supported by Edward ‘Rambo’ Russell, who made further ground, and as the ball came wide left Andy McGill was there again, and then a knot of forwards including Rob Thomson and Erland Drever drove over the line, with Rob eventually grounding the ball to roars of approval from the home crowd. James Linklater’s conversion kick from wide on the touchline was just wide, making it 14-5 to the visitors.
This was the spur that Selkirk had obviously needed, and five minutes later, after breaks from Fraser Harkness and second row Neil Darling, it was Selkirk front row Martin Murray who came off the side of a rolling maul to score his side’s third try of the afternoon, converted well from wide on the right by Michal Rutherford. 21-5 to Selkirk.
The rain was back on now, and it was not long before it was 28-5, with Fraser Harkness on the run again and finding a rare gap in the Orkney defence to make it a double for him on the day. A clash with Orkney’s Edward Russell as he scored saw the full-back replaced soon after.
Before Selkirk could add to their score, Orkney had a break upfield and an impressive break from Erlend Hutchison brought to life the drookled crowd. Erlend’s pace had left him without support though and the attack broke down.
The final try of the afternoon came amid increasingly heavy rain, which was making handling difficult for all concerned. A successful take at a lineout saw the visitors build a drive towards the Orkney line and it was hooker Ewan Robbie who eventually broke to ground the ball for an unconverted try.
Orkney’s heads never went down, even as the points margin grew, and as the game moved into the final quarter, with the rain easing and the light fading, Orkney continued to defend well and indeed managed one final assault on the Selkirk line
Erland Hutchison was again in possession heading for the Selkirk line, before the forwards again got into gear and set up a drive. It was not to be this time though, and Orkney had run out of time, but ended the game as they had ended the first half – on the attack deep inside Selkirk’s half.
ORKNEY: James Linklater, Adam Towrie, Erlend Hutchison, Glen McLellan, Raymond Moodie, John Dearness, Al Watson, Erland Drever, Derek Sutherland, Lee Thomson, Kevin Sinclair, Stewart Spence, Garry Burton, Edward Russell, Andy McGill. Replacements (all used): Neil Work, Rob Thomson, Colin Risbridger, Kevin Pepper.
SELKIRK: Fraser Harkness, Guy Blair, David Cassidy, Ali Lyall, Scott Hendrie, Michael Rutherford, Michael McVie, Ben Rawcliffe, Ewan Robbie, Martin Murray, Neil Darling, Marcus Barnett, Scott Tomlinson, Denver Rumney, Scott Jeffrey. Replacements (all used): Steven Renwick, Gordon Patterson, Jim Ross, Rob Taylor.
Referee - Jeremy Thomson (Aberdeen GSFP).
