BT Premiership

HERIOT'S FP 33

MARR RUGBY 10

THE return to action after the Autumn Test enforced break was very much welcomed by Marr Rugby.

However, the break also cruelly exposed the differences in appreciation, understanding and readiness as Premiership mainstays Heriot’s gave the visitors a lesson in control and precision as they soaked up pressure and, when the opportunity presented, struck with surgical precision.

After Marr’s four and Heriot’s two week break from competitive action one of the key questions was which side was likely to be more match sharp and fit.

Unfortunately for Marr the pointer struck East and within five minutes Heriot’s showed what they could and would continue to do with decent possession and opportunity as Jack Turley opened the scoring with a converted try. Marr responded with a decent period of possession and territory but found Heriot’s defence to be water-tight. Under pressure they conceded several penalties which Marr opted to kick for attacking field position. From the resulting lineouts a combination of solid defence which harried Marr leading to forced errors and compounded by and unforced errors set what was to become the pattern of play for Marr’s day.

When Heriot’s gained possession they made good use of this to relive pressure and clear their lines. In addition they showed early signs of pacey and dangerous running across the backs with energetic scrum-half Tom Wilson leading the way in attack and defence.

Just before half-time Marr again laid siege on Heriot’s line, and the pressure eventually was rewarded as Mackenzie Pearce bulldozed his way through what had until this point been an impenetrable defence. Dougie Steele converted to level.

In the opening exchanges of the second half Marr continued enjoying good phases of possession and took play deep into Heriots half. Under pressure Heriot’s conceded further penalties and Marr again opted for attacking field position but were unable to convert these opportunities into points. When Heriot’s Jack McLean was on the end of a team yellow card as he sin binned following repeated infringements Marr briefly took the lead as Dougie Steele converted the penalty kick. The loss of a player galvanised Heriots who spent the ten minutes in rampant attacking mode that gave a sign of what would follow in the final quarter.

In 50 minutes, they regained the lead with the first of two tries from hooker Michael Liness who kept popping up as an auxiliary back as Heriot’s started to stretch Marr’s defence. Then in the final quarter Heriot’s added three further tries as they started to cut open.

After the final whistle Marr were left to contemplate what needs to be done to give a sharper cutting edge especially as they next up face the visit of a resurgent basement team Hawick.

Marr Rugby 1st XV man of the match: Mackenzie Pearce (sponsored by AG Peters Garage)

BT National Reserve League Two

DUNDEE HIGH RUGBY 12

MARR RUGBY 43

MAGNIFICENT Marr hit Dundee for seven as they continued their winning run in the BT National Reserve League and stalk league leaders Hawick.

Rory McGee, who has only recently returned to play after his extended break due to work commitments, was in devastating form at stand-off. Rory’s return to this key position meant that Jack Scott (sponsored by the Harbour Bar) was switched to cover outside centre and he made the most of the space he was given to score a brace of tries. The other four tries were scored by the pack as they out muscled the home side in set piece and open play.

The result sees Marr continue in second spot from where they closely track league leaders Hawick. Marr’s performance was a good run out and preparation for Saturday's important tie against third placed GHA as both clubs vie for the top spot.

Marr Rugby 2nd XV man of the match: Rory McGee

Scorers

Tries: Richard McNicol (2); Jack Scott (2); Calum Steel; Josh Evans and Rory McGee

Conversions: Rory McGee (4)

The Reserve League Two game between Cumnock 2s and Marr 3s was postponed with the East Ayrshire team's pitch unplayable.