Stra’ven stay in second spot

Strathaven kept their grip on second place in the Tennent’s West League 2 with a good 39-0 win at Cumnock on Saturday.

The Lanarkshire side played well and stopped Cumnock from scoring, but it was in the second 40 that they stormed clear, having led 8-0 at the break.

After a missed attempt, Euan Heggie got things underway with a penalty, with James Orr crossing for the first try.

Playing into the wind, Strathaven may have wished their lead was larger, but they took the game to their hosts.

A strong carry from James Coe took Strathaven deep into Cumnock territory, with Ed Mackenzie taking the final pass to score at the posts, and Heggie converting for 15-0.

Andrew Robertson was next to dot down, following a good show of hands and running angles in the backs, and he quickly added his second score, for a 25-0 lead.

Craig Hamilton and Scott Donald were involved in the next move, with the latter exchanging passes with Ross Murphy for the latter to score at the posts, with Mackenzie’s conversion stretching the lead to 32-0.

There was still time for another Strathaven try, with Glen Neilson crashing over and Robertson converting.

Something happened off the ball after that, with a Cumnock player lashing out at Mackenzie, sparking a touchline brawl which the visiting side dealt with very well, ushering the player away from pitch-side, and both players and officials apologising to their Strathaven counterparts.

Dalziel moved up from sixth to fourth with a good 31-13 win at Waysiders/ Drumpellier.

For a second week in a row the Motherwell side scored 30 or more points, in stark contrast to a struggle last season.

Tries were scored by Andy Scott, Callum Croughan, Alan Bowles and Iain Davidson, with Scott slotting four conversions and a penalty.

Coach Graham Calder said:“the boys did very well in attack, but we were disappointed in their performance in defence, particularly in the first half.

“However, they took on board what we were saying and improved.”

Dalziel now face West League 1 side Irvine in the West Shield first round, and they’re not just going to make up the numbers.

Calder said:“last season we did very well in this competition, got to the final and lost narrowly to Greenock, so we want to go one better.

“We’re targeting this game to win it, not just to make up the numbers and focus on the league – we want to progress.”

Uddingston were docked three points by the SRU for failing to field enough players at Wigtownshire, with the fixture rescheduled for this Saturday.

The Villagers are also due at Ladies Walk on West Shield first round duty, so this will be a dual fixture, to get both games played. Fixtures (Saturday, September 28): Tennent’s National 1: Gala v Biggar. National 2: Preston Lodge v Hamilton. West Shield 1st round: Waysiders/ Drumpellier v Strathaven; Irvine v Dalziel.

West Bowl quarter-final: Lanark v Cumbernauld.

West League 2: Wigtownshire v Uddingston.