Quaich joy for Caithness U16 boys – but girls are pipped at post
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Caithness youth rugby sides met with contrasting fortunes in Caledonia regional finals they contested on Sunday.
There was joy for the under-16 boys when they took home the Saltire Energy Quaich after coming from behind to defeat their Carnoustie counterparts 27-12 in Invergordon.
But it was heartbreak for Caithness under-16 girls after they lost out 39-38 to Oban Lorne in the plate final in Inverness.
The 18 boys from Caithness were joined by the three Ross Sutherland players who have been playing all season for them.
The Angus side were quickly out of the traps and took advantage of a handling error to open the scoring.
Playing with the wind, Carnoustie were soon crossing the whitewash again to go 12-0 in front.
Caithness, whose scrum was dominant throughout, came back strongly and were held up over the line twice before flanker George Mills powered over for an unconverted try following a lineout.
With the elements behind them, the junior Greens had their tails up, though long spells of pressure went unrewarded.
The Carnoustie defensive dam eventually burst when prop Benjamin Rogers strong-armed his way over, with Logan Mcneill's conversion levelling the scores.
Rogers repeated the act soon after to put his team 19-12 ahead.
The Caithness defence was then severely tested only for a counter-attack to yield a penalty, which Mcneill potted.
The victory was sealed with the last play when some slick interpassing ended with outside centre Oly Ruff touching down wide out.
Coach Donald Buchanan was delighted to see the squad land the club's first junior boys' silverware since the 2014/15 season.
"It was a pretty even game and the final scoreline possibly flattered us a bit," he said. "Our set-piece was really strong all day and that gave a platform for our backs to perform.
"Our defence was also really good and stood up well to long spells of pressure we were put under."
He added: "The win is a deserved reward for all the nights of training in the rain and wind that the boys have put in."
Buchanan, who is assisted by Ewen Boyd, is looking forward to seeing some of his older players progress into the U18s.
Sunday's squad: Shayne Mackay, Connor Lynch, Benjamin Rogers, Robbie Todd, Tyler Gordon, Derek Dimes, George Mills, Connor Allan (captain), Logan Mcneill, Robbie Boyd, Harvey Labour, Liam Giles, Oly Ruff, Rory McGee, Lee Pollard, Luke Taylor, Harry Manson, Danny Dimes, Lawlyn Grant, Rory Sutherland and Gavin Mackenzie.
The U16 girls, meanwhile, were pipped at the post in their final against Oban Lorne at the Highland RFC base at Canal Park.
Sinclair Dunnett's side had recovered from an error-strewn first half to lead 38-29, only to concede two late tries – the second deep in injury time – to lose out 39-38.
The coach said: "We were very slow to start and made a lot of mistakes which put us on the back foot. It might have been that nerves got the better of them, but we just never got out of the blocks in the first half."
A sea change after the interval saw the far north team turn on the style and start eating into their 24-0 deficit.
Tries by Megan Mackay (2), Tamsin Rosie (2) and Sarah Manson (2), four converted by Tamsin, had them nine points ahead and seemingly in cruise control.
Dunnett said: "The girls were obviously gutted and they know they didn't play well in the first half. If they played in the first half like they did in the second, it would have been 50 or 60 nil.
"We showed a bit of naivety at times but, to be fair to them, they showed real grit to pull their socks up at half-time and show what they can do."
The squad, which had eight girls unavailable or injured, included two under-14 debutants in Carla Edwards and Rhona Allan.
The coach picked out stand-off Bethany Peden, tighthead Sarah Dunnett and scrum-half Tamsin Rosie as stand-out players.
