Heriot’s 33 Watsonians 41

Quick-witted Watsonians consigned Heriot’s to a third consecutive league defeat with a splendid fightback in the Scottish Hydro Premier Division 1 match at Goldenacre this afternoon.

Having trailed 0-16 after 20 minutes, the visitors desire to maintain a high tempo and reward their forwards’ athleticism was demonstrated as two of their subsequent five tries came from quickly-taken tap penalties.  Their victory was thoroughly deserved.

Sonians stand-off Michael Ker missed an early kick at goal but, thereafter, he orchestrated proceedings superbly, while Scotland under-20 cap Ashleah McCulloch was a persistent threat in midfield.

There was resolve to their display too.  They defended stoutly, even when reduced to 14 men when No 8 Stuart McInally was sin-binned in the first-half, and actually dominated the scoring 7-3 during his absence.

They played with confidence, too, a trait lacking in Heriot’s ranks. The hosts were ineffectual in midfield until the late introduction of Richard Mill and their inability to get much out of such potent strike runners as Colin Goudie and Jonathan Alston frustrated their supporters.

There was little indication of the fireworks to follow as Heriot’s scrum-half Graham Wilson gave them a comfortable opening with three successful penalties.  The loss of their experienced winger Marc Teague with a shoulder injury did not appear to deter them initially as from Wilson’s box kick off a scrum in his 22, Heriot’s repossessed, for Michael Maltman, their openside recruit from Musselburgh, to break and dispatch his No 8 Jamie Syme in for a try.  Wilson’s conversion saw Heriot’s lead 16-0 after 20 minutes.

Ker missed his first pot at goal but atoned within a minute.  McCulloch had jinked deep into home territory and had been halted by a high tackle.  Ker eschewed the kick at goal, tapped and had enough gas and strength to dot down for a try which he converted.

Alston should have done much better on a potential two to one with Stuart Hogg outside him, though the full-back then had to earn his spurs in defence getting back to save from Sonians scrum-half Murray Bringhurst’s break and kick-ahead. 

Sandwiching these two incidents was McInally’s yellow card for not rolling away at breakdown, Wilson exacting revenge with his fourth penalty.

But by the break, Ker had claimed his second try, as, from wide out on the right, he collected his own cleverly weighted chip kick to score.  His conversion narrowed Heriot’s advantage to 19-14 at the interval.

Within four minutes of the restart Sonians forged in front, a lead they were not to lose, as full-back Jamie Blackwood capitalised on another quickly taken penalty for try number three.  Ker converted.

Maltman threatened off lineout ball for Heriot’s but although he broke the initial defence he could not beat the final defender of find a supporting runner – and it happened later in the half for good measure too – as Ker, now in dead-eye Dick mode, landed his first penalty and converted Max Learmonth’s try to give the visitors a 31-19 lead after 56 minutes.

Wilson caught the tap penalty bug for Heriot’s and, sure enough, it bore fruit, albeit there was a suspicion of a forward pass as he released Syme before Richard Mill bulleted in at the posts. Wilson’s conversion cut the lead to 26-31.

Ker’s second penalty stretched Watsonians beyond one clear score and although the strangely anonymous Goudie made one menacing sortie into the visitors 22, Heriot’s were turned over and as no-side neared Learmonth quashed any hopes of a losing bonus point with Sonians fifth try after he had finished off a lovely sweeping counter-attack.  Ker’s conversion took his personal points haul to 26.

In injury time, an offside penalty was run and prop Alan Dymock bulldozed over at pace for Wilson to convert but it had little relevance to the outcome of the match.