OBAN LORNE RUGBY ROUND-UP
Wigtownshire 10 Oban Lorne 14 Men’s National League Division Two
Oban made the long trip down to Stranraer for the second time this season to play against an in-form Wigtownshire side.
It’s difficult to remember the last time Oban left London Road with anything to show for it, but this game was key to their title hopes.
Having managed to avoid the snow, the game got under way in blustery conditions, with the pitch in great condition for running rugby and Oban exploited this from the start.
The pressure in the opening 20 minutes was all green, with Oban knocking on Shire’s door on multiple occasions as the penalties began to flow. Fin Carmichael put Oban into an early 3-0 lead, following this up with two more penalties.
Just before half time, Shire struck back as some hard carrying saw them score in the left corner, before missing the conversion, making it 5-9 at half-time.
The second half started with Oban putting pressure on the Shire line, with some strong carries by Eric Roberts and Jethro Anderson seeing yards gained before another penalty shot went just wide.
Not long after, Vasil Borisov unleashed Calum MacLachlan on the inside and the prop ran 30 metres, bouncing through four Shire players before crashing over for Oban’s first try.
Shire hit back with another fine try to make it 10-14, but Oban were able to repel the ensuing Wigtownshire pressure in an impressive defensive display.
A quick break down the wing left Callum Hamilton and George Gilbert defending in a four vs two situation, but somehow they forced a forward pass from Shire and Oban were able to clear their lines from the following scrum.
However, Shire had the ball just on the Oban five metre line before Finn Charlton latched onto the ball at the bottom of a ruck to claim a match-winning turnover.
The final five minutes were testament to the belief that Oban have as they remain third in the league, six points behind the leaders Dalziel, with two games in hand.
Oban return to Glencruitten on Saturday March 25 to host Strathendrick and the match will be followed by the Oban Lorne RFC race night fundraiser.
Elsewhere, the Oban Lorne Under-18s faced another tough encounter, defeating Cumnock/Annan 38-28 away.
The hosts led 21-17 at halftime, with Murray Macdonald and Jack Johnson scoring Oban’s tries.
Oban struck back in the second-half though, through tries from Macdonald and Gordon Maclean, before Cumnock bounced back again.
However, the visitors were able to finish the game off as Macdonald completed a hat trick of tries and Archie Campbell scored to give their side an impressive win.