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| DUNS 7 - CAITHNESS 6 by Iain Grant |
| Wed 17th Jan 2007 |
The Greens trudged back on Saturday after suffering a double whammy during their marathon haul to the Borders.
A single point reverse, which gave their opponents their first win in 17 attempts, adds to the far north combine’s sorry record on the road in National League Division 2.
But the game also saw further injury woe for stand-off Michael Henderson whose repeat shoulder dislocation spells the end of his season.
The 22-year-old, who is the club’s only bespoke number 10 and its front-line place-kicker, had just returned to action after a three month lay-off.
The Greens had led 6-0 at the break on the back of two Henderson penalties.
His injury 15 minutes after the turnaround was one of three which led to enforced reshuffles.
Young back rower Grant Anderson was forced off soon after the kick-off while winger James ‘Pigeon’ Sinclair was also an early casualty though he was forced to hobble back in the latter stages.
While the Duns pitch was remarkably firm, the game was badly disrupted by a blustery wind.
It blew across the park in the first half but then changed direction to blast into the faces of the visitors after the break.
The Greens’ failure to have secured a bigger cushion by then was exposed as their opponents built up a head of steam.
What proved the winning score came midway through the second period after the visitors were caught cold after they were penalised for going offside at a maul five metres from their line.
Tongan centre Taniela Taveti exploited the defensive disarray to take a quick tap-and-go to plunge over 15 metres from the posts.
Skipper Keith Cockburn landed the tricky conversion to nose his side in front.
Caithness had to withstand further pressure as they were forced to focus on preventing further damage rather than threatening at the other end.
Greens coach Colin Sangster missed the game due to coaching commitments with the Caley under-18 side.
He said: "By all accounts, we certainly had our chances to win the game.
"We were under a bit of pressure for the first 20 minutes but we were then well on top for the remainder of the half.
"We kicked a couple of penalties but we really needed to be a few more points up to face the conditions that prevailed in the second half."
Sangster said the setpiece continues to function satisfactorily and the side was winning at least its fair share of the ball at the breakdown.
The key problem area continues to be a lack of cutting edge in the three-quarters.
The coach said Saturday’s opponents were quite different to the rag-tag outfit who lost 65-8 in Thurso in September.
"They were a totally different side," he said.
"They were unrecognisable from the team we played at home."
The Greens’ record at home and away are mirror opposites.
They have lost just once at Millbank (10-9 to Highland) in seven matches but have been defeated in seven of their eight outings.
Their 15-8 success in Kilmarnock has been their only success on the road.
Their home form has achieved what was the club’s number one priority, which was to retain their place in the 12-team division.
Realistically, they will do well to hold on their current position of seventh.
Looking at the remainder of the campaign, even the most hopeful Green fan would find it difficult to foresee them harvesting many more points.
Their seven match run-in includes home-and-away tussles with promotion-chasing pair Garnock and Annan; home encounters with leaders Falkirk and fourth-placed Linlithgow; and an away assignment to Highland.
Caithness - R. Mackay, J. Paterson, W. Mill, B. McIntosh, J. Sinclair, M. Henderson, G. Fryer, J. Foubister (cpt). S. Campbell, T. Sutherland, A. Morris, E. Boyd, G. Sutherland, G. Anderson, E. Sutherland. Replacements - J. McMillan, J. Hamilton and K. Hamilton (all used).
The match in Duns was just one of three in NLD2 to go on, with the other three being scrubbed due to waterlogged grounds.
Highland moved within three points of Caithness after grinding out a 7-3 win in Stewartry.
Garnock’s 6-6 away draw versus Glasgow Accies meanwhile enabled them to jump into second spot, a point ahead of Annan.
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| 1st XV Season (2009/10) |
| Kilmarnock 81 - 5 Caithness |
| 17th Apr 10 - KO: 12:00 |
| Venue: Bellsland |
| :: Match Report |
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| 1st XV Season (2010/11) |
| Caithness vs Kilmarnock |
| 4th Sep 10 - KO: 15:00 |
| Venue: Millbank |
| :: More Fixtures |
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