Selkirk 15
Falkirk 17
PREMIER C
LAING SPEIRS reports
from Philiphaugh
IT TOOK Falkirk until injury time to get the winning points, but it was the inevitable outcome for a lacklustre performance by Selkirk.
A single losing bonus point left them just behind Kelso in RBS Premier C, with one game to play in Glasgow.
Falkirk, while never likely to serve up a game to be remembered, were dogged opponents, taking the Selkirk pack to the cleaners time and again.
The Souters started shorthanded through injuries and unavailability, and found themselves struggling when key goal kicker David Cassidy went off injured in the first half.
Team manager Brian Cassidy, faced with a question about Selkirk’s poor second half, couldn’t find much to praise in the first 40 minutes either.
“We came up pretty short when it came to quality and our scrum totally disintegrated,” he said.
An early penalty by Falkirk’s Jonny Hope was quickly forgotten when a smart bit of juggling by the Selkirk backs saw the ball come to rest in Michael Davies’ hands for the opening try at the corner. In a rare Falkirk attack, their centres linked with full back Hope to send Bob Wylie in for a try on the half-hour.
It took a Fraser Harkness try, following one of Selkirk’s best periods of scrummaging, and a smart appraisal of the opening by Michael McVie, to ease the home side ahead. McVie added the conversion. Half-time score: 12-8.
Falkirk dominated the first 20 minutes after the break, with Hope hitting the post from far out with a penalty, and then getting one through the middle.
A rare Selkirk attack featuring the centres and replacement Brendon Reid was squeezed out, but the game stuttered with a rash of minor injuries.
McVie put over an easy penalty, but it still looked like Falkirk all the way.
After a period of intense pressure on the Selkirk line they got the points they deserved. Hope added two late penalties, the winning points coming from a kick just inside the Selkirk half.
Selkirk: F. Harkness; M. Davies, S. Hendrie, N. Godsmark, C. McColm; D. Cassidy, M.McVie; G. Patterson, P. Mirrielees, S. Renwick, R. Aglen, C. Marshall, S. McDonald, C. Johnston, E. MacDougall. Subs: R. Godsmark, B. Reid, J. Everitt, J. Beattie.