Ayr 21 - 7 Currie: Ayr manage to Climo all over Currie

Published on Saturday 7 November 2009 20:29

THIS was a result that Premier One needed. Ayr reduced Currie's advantage in the league such that the Edinburgh side remain on top but only thanks to their much superior points difference.

The match started with an early dust up between the two sets of forwards but after that Ayr made much the better fist of things, largely thanks to Frazier Climo. The flyhalf scored 16 points with three penalties, a conversion and a try. Not a bad afternoon's work for someone who was so badly concussed last week at West of Scotland that he had to be carted from the field.

Currie can blame themselves for playing some brainless rugby but they weren't helped by a crucial injury one quarter of the way through the match when playmaker Andrew Binikos was stretchered off the field with a broken ankle. It may have made the difference because Currie had to rejig half their backline and Johnny Smith moved from fullback to flyhalf, where he was comprehensively outplayed by his opposite number, Climo, whose kicking from hand was the main difference between the two teams.

Currie drew first blood within five minutes of kick-off, although Chris Kinloch will still be pondering just how he managed to evade the five defenders who had him surrounded. Binikos took the ball up to the line and the Glasgow professional picked a line into the heart of the Ayr defence, which immediately downed tools. Any pretense at tackling Kinloch amounted to no more than a hearty slap on his back as he powered past. That proved Currie's first and their last score.

Ayr were roused from their slumbers and after that early shock the traffic was mostly one way, heading towards the Currie line. When Climo wasn't hoisting the ball into the clear winter skies, the flyhalf was plugging the corners, and Currie's back three ran it back almost every time with disastrous results.

While he is a strong runner, Kinloch's decision-making was abject after the centre was shuffled to fullback. Faced with a wall of pink and black Ayr shirts and without a friendly face in sight, the youngster didn't hesitate before charging headlong into the midst of the enemy when the ball was crying out to be hoofed up field, a sentiment shared by Currie's forwards. Little wonder that Currie coach Ally Donaldson asked Graham White to take over the 15 duties after the half-time break.

Kinloch was not the only guilty party. Dougie Fife ran the ball back at all the wrong times and his blind back flip to absolutely no-one won't have endeared him to his coach. Shifted to flyhalf, Smith was trying to score a try from his own 22 with almost every play in the second half. It was horribly naive.

Climo slotted two first-half penalties, the first when his side were reduced to 14 men with flanker Paul Burke making his habitual trip to the sin bin. The key score then came immediately before half time when Ayr stole a turnover at a set scrum and Climo burst through the No.10 channel to race 40 yards to the line. His conversion gave Ayr a 13-7 lead at the break.

It stayed that way for much of the remainder of the game until Climo eventually extended Ayr's lead by another three points on 65 minutes with a simple penalty conceded by Currie lock Ryan Wilson who was carded for his troubles.

Ayr's final try came from Dougie Steele who'd been on the field for just two minutes. It came, as you'd expect, from an inch-perfect cross-field kick courtesy of Climo.

Ayr: G Anderson, A Wilson, R Curle, M Stewart, C Taylor; F Climo, J Hunter; G Reid, S Fenwick, E Kalman, D Kelly, S Sutherland, J Crossan, P Burke, G Tippett.

Subs from: S Adair, A Dunlop, H Mitchell. D Steele, AJ MacFarlane.

Currie: J Smith, W Moala, C Kinloch, A McMahon, D Fife; A Binikos, R Sneddon; A Hamilton, A Walker, A Reekie, R Wilson, A Adam, S Burton, J Thompson, R Weston.

Subs from: N Scobie, M Cairns, S Forrest, G White, I Downie.

Scorers: Scorers: Ayr – Try: Climo, Steele Conv: Climo Pen: Climo (3) Currie – Try: Kinloch, Conv: Smith

Referee: A McPherson (Livingston)