Hillfoots Weekly News 8 Demember

By [email protected]
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The highlight of last week was undoubtedly Jamie Bhatti presenting the Scotland Shirt that he wore against Australia in Scotland’s fantastic win!  It was great that Jamie took time out of his busy schedule to come back to the Club, chat with his old coaches and former teammates as well as inspire the next generation of international players!  

Jamie started playing rugby at Hillfoots and epitomizes the Club’s hope to take its kids all the way from ‘Minis to Murrayfield’.  Jamie’s meteoric rise illustrates the development pathway from grassroots rugby at ‘Foots, through to playing for County, Caledonia and Scotland Youth squads then Melrose and now as the starting prop for Glasgow Warriors and what an impact sub for Scotland!  We are really grateful that Jamie took time off following Warriors win over Cardiff on Friday night before heading back to Glasgow to prepare for training the next day!

This Saturday sees a bumper weekend of rugby at Tilly Park with Hillfoots 1stXV hosting Falkirk 2nd’s, while the Hillfoots Rams host Aberfeldy. We are also delighted to welcome some of our great sponsors to lunch to thank them for their support throughout the season.  

Hope to see you in the Park or in the Club!

 Paddy
 

1st XV Match Report

 
St. Andrews was the venue for the first match for the Hillfoots 1st XV since before the Autumn Internationals, as Madras RFC hosted them for keenly anticipated game of rugby. Both teams started the game with intent with Madras dominating possession for the first 5-10 minutes however, the Hillfoot’s defence was up to the challenge and soaked up the pressure and remained disciplined. Shortly after this wave of attack, the Hillfoots regained possession and their attacking threat began to penetrate the Madras defence and scored 5 tries in the first half, with no reply from the hosts. The visitors went into the half-time with a comfortable and flattering lead which did not do justice to Madras’ level of possession and sniping runs. 

The second half began brightly for the visitors and they scored a couple of early tries which put the game beyond Madras’ reach.  Hillfoots played quickly and with confidence in their system, which began to hurt the hosts as the scores started to mount up. Towards the end of the game, Hillfoots conceded a series of penalties which put Madras within a scoring opportunity, to which they capitalised and they scored a late consolation try. The scored ended up being 65-5, with Hillfoots reinforcing why they are title contenders in this league. 

The Rams v Rosyth Sharks

The Rams welcomed Rosyth Sharks to Tillicoultry on Saturday for this league encounter. The big Rosyth pack dominated the breakdowns and had the Rams defence under pressure for a lot of the 1st half. During this time they built a 12 point lead by scoring 2 tries and 1 conversion. When the Rams had possession they did make ground and 1 of these attacks resulted in a fine try scored by Jack McClymont which was converted by Gregor Manson. The 1st half came to a close with Rosyth scoring again to take them into the break 19 -5 in front.

The Rams enjoyed a better start to the 2nd half and got themselves back into the match when Alex Cameron outstripped the Sharks defence to score a great try which Manson converted. As the 2nd half wore on the benefits of having a full replacements bench gave the Sharks the opportunity to introduce fresh legs while the Rams had to make do with their starting XV. As the match drew to its conclusion the Sharks extended their lead by scoring another 4 tries of which 3 were converted and took them home comfortable winners.
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