Cumnock / Kilmarnock Cougars 40 - Annan Tigers 25

Never having played each other before this match was a step into the unknown for both teams.

The first half started lively enough with some good interplay from both sets of players. The Annan forwards were a big bunch of lads but the home pack were able to spoil things and slow the game down. The Cougar's backs looked dangerous running forward with the ball and found gaps in the Tigers defence. However slack play allowed the visitors to get the first score from a powerful driving run from their second row and number eight.

The home side woke up and started to play to their strengths, moving the ball quickly along the line. Smart thinking from fly-half David Smith spotted lots of space behind the full back and a lovely kick put the ball into space. Gregor Aitken was following up and as the Tigers full back tried to gather the ball in Aitken kicked the ball ahead and with a race to the line against a prop there was only going to be one winner. Smith converted Aitken's try to give the home side a 7-5 advantage.

Three minutes later Callan Gordon took the ball from the restart inside his own half and a typical mazy, powerful run saw a wake of defenders littering his wake as he dived over for a well deserved try, with Smith again adding the extras.

The game settled down a bit but a melee near the Annan try line saw one of their players seing red and from the resultant penalty the Cougars moved the ball quickly along the back line to the ever lively Gregor Paxton who had no problems scoring from close range. Smith took a tremendous conversion from out near the touchline to end the half with the score 21-5 to the home team.

Four minutes into the second half Paxton was again on the scoresheet following a blistering run from the left wing to score in the right corner, skipping his way through five attempted tackles. With Smith again converting the Cougars should have been home and dry.

Annan then started to play some rugby to their strengths, keeping the ball within the forwards. As the larger players charged upfield, poor tackling by the Cougars saw Annan work their way towards the home teams line. A blistering run from their number eight saw him score a well deserved try in the seventh minute and then a similar piece of play led to another score for the visitors in the eleventh minute of the second half. Both conversion attempts went astray but Annan' s confidence had received a much needed boost.

For the next seven minutes the home defence weathered an onslaught of barging runs and pick and drives by the Annan pack. There were some good tackles made, particularly by Jack Reilly and Aidan Kerr. However injuries were starting to take their toll and Annan scored again in the eighteenth minute, bringing them right back into the game. When the visitors crossed the line again two minutes later to bring the score to 28-25 the home team looked on the rack.

All credit to the Cougars, they picked themselves up and showed huge character in the final ten minutes of the game. They had a line-out on their own 22 and secured the ball from the throw in, then released quick ball along the back line and a surging run from Paxton ended up with him scoring between the posts, presenting a straightforward kick for his fly-half.

With a minute left to go the Cougars again gathered in the ball from the restart and the ball was moved quickly along the line and Taylor Howie took the ball at pace to fly for the corner. A despairing tackle from his opposite number brought him down just short but Howie managed to stretch and place the ball on the line.

A win is a win but in the end the home team had to work hard to secure it. They need to compete for the full sixty minutes and not switch off when they think that they have a comfortable lead. With the final score 6 tries to 5 it was only the boot of the ever dependable Smith that kept their noses in front until the final few minutes when the game was finally secured.

Team: McEwan (c), R Mclaren, Faulds, A McLaren, Phillips, Gordon, Young, Reilly, Kerr, Hamilton, Smith, Aitken, Howie, Paxton, Bowditch, Barr, Wight, Crawshaw, McCulloch.