Cumnock U15 Win On The Road Again

The lessons learned from last weekend still ringing in their ears Cumnock came out if the blocks flying and pressed their hosts at every opportunity. Continuity in attack has been a focus in training and this was evident as the wave after wave offloading led to the opening points with Liam Murray crashing over from short range for a converted score. Livingston responded with an unconverted score. The next KO saw a Cumnock domination of possession again and through a phase that saw the ball being passed through a number of sets of hands landed with Luke Cooper who turned on the gas and powered over the line, Murray was on hand to slot the conversion. Once again Livingston dug in and manage to pull back an unconverted score. Cumnock try machine, Ruairidh Airlie, had been quiet during the opening phases however the lit the touch paper with a typical bulldozing run to dot down under the posts. As the whistle blew for the end of the half Airlie had bagged a hat trick and the ‘Nock side were well worth their 24 – 33 lead.

The second half saw a very even tussle continue with tit for tat scoring however the visitors were extending their lead through their consistent addition of conversion points making the difference. Although Airlie dominated the try scoring with a 2nd half hat trick he was benefitting for some very solid play from his team mates. Cameron Smith, Caleb Askin and Keiran Makin had a tremendous impact taking the ball forward at every opportunity. Cumnock scrum halves Kerr Robson and Evan Smith were busy and added to the fast attacking play that this team favour. The team also had some players from the U14 team helping on the day and each one of them making a telling contribution. In the pack Ali Rodger and John Conner worked consistently coupled with flying backs Lewis Young and Luke Cooper ensured that their introduction to U15 rugby was positive experience. On the final whistle it was Cumnock that took home the spoils with a 41 – 54 victory.

Coach Bowditch commented “This was another step forward for the team, work on the training ground is starting to show regularly and a number of players are starting to make their mark on the team performance. The development of this team is a journey and we are still some way from the final destination however the all signs are positive.” Harry Reilly added “ We played rugby from the off this week and our hosts never managed to contain our pressing game. We are particularly pleased with the spread of the workload as more and more players take on supporting roles. We need to tighten our defence however the attack is working well. We are very pleased with the way the team is starting to gel and look forward, with excitement, to the rest of the season.”

Special mentions on the day for Ruairidh Airlie with a 6 try haul, front rower Keiran Makin had his best game in a Cumnock shirt and team kicker Liam Murray was on form again with 7 conversions from 8.

Team: Arun Cameron-Cooper, Luke Cameron-Cooper, Evan Smith, Jamie Kennedy, Kerr Robson, Keiran Makin, Andrew Rodger, Iain Stobbs, Reece Morrison, Liam Murray, Ruairidh, Airlie, Cameron Smith(C), Luke Donald, Lewis Young, John Connor, Ali Rodger, Caleb Askin

The U15 side is still keen to recruit players so if you are interested come along to training on Tuesdays (2000-2100) and Thursday (1800-1900) both at Townhead Park. For more information please call 01290 420292.

Next game for the U15 team is Sunday 23rd October away to Marr Rugby with a 1400 KO