Currie 39 - 37 Aberdeen Grammar: Positive rugby from Currie brings second-half revival

“You would have thought that the boys would be bouncing off the walls in there but they are pretty quiet,” said coach Ali Donaldson. “They are extremely tired and they are realistic about the fact that we let ourselves down defensively in the first half.”

Aberdeen led 29-10 at the break, thanks to tries from Will Wardlaw, Stuart Smith, Erland Oag and Ade Hales, plus three conversions and a penalty from Mark Ryan. All the home team’s points came from Hinds, with an early penalty and the conversion of his 37th-minute try.

From the touchline, it was hard to see a way back for the hosts at this point but Donaldson insists that his belief in the squad’s ability to salvage victory from the jaws of defeat never wavered.

“We actually played some pretty good rugby in the first half and had a lot of chances to score, but we made some pretty bad decisions and defended as poorly as I can remember. I just didn’t feel we were out of it – because we had created so many chances,” he explained.

“The important thing in the second-half was not to chase the game. We said during the break that it was to be in with a shout of winning it with ten minutes to go, and we played some really positive rugby. It shows a real strength of character.”

The revival was initiated by a solo try from full-back Dougie Fife, and although Aberdeen responded almost immediately with a second touchdown for Hales, the momentum of this match had already swung  Currie’s way.

Aberdeen’s cause was not helped when referee Lloyd Linton finally lost patience with Aberdeen’s desperate attempts to slow Currie possession and sent Stuart Smith to the cooler for ten minutes. Three minutes later they conceded a penalty try, and before the ten minutes was up John Cox had rumbled over to reduce the gap to just three points.

But then another twist, with Fife being sent to the sin-bin and Ryan kicking his second penalty, which meant Currie now needed a converted try.

In the last minute of regular time, Currie captain Mark Cairns forced his way over, but Hinds couldn’t make the conversion from wide on the right, and when Richard Snedden fumbled at the base of a ruck it looked like Aberdeen would hold on for a much needed victory.

But Currie’s relentless drive would not subside, and in the fourth minute of injury time they got their reward, with an Aberdeen player making a nuisance of himself on the wrong side of a ruck, and receiving a painful shoe-ing as a result. In fact, there was a brief moment when it looked like the referee, under guidance from his touch-judge, might reverse the decision because of excessive use of the boot, but the man in the middle stuck to his guns, and Aberdeen can have no real complaints.

There will inevitably be an inquest in the north into how and why such a commanding lead was relinquished, but the Rubislaw men should draw considerable comfort from the many good things they did on Saturday – especially during the first half. They have the nuts and bolts of a good team, but need to do some tightening.

Meanwhile, Currie are expecting several key players – including Ross Weston, Gregor Hunter, Fergus Scott and Jonny Gray – back in the next few weeks, and have the potential to be serious contenders this year.

Scorers: Currie – Tries: Hinds, Fife, Penalty Try, Cox, Cairns. Cons: Hinds 4; Pens: Hinds 2. Aberdeen – Tries: Wardlaw, Smith, Oag, Hales 2; Cons: M Ryan 3; Pens: M Ryan 2.

Currie: D Fife; A Hinds, J Johnstone, S James, A Whitingham; A Binikos, R Snedden; A Hamilton, R Merrilees, F Watts. S Burton, S Marcell, M Peacock, M Entwhistle, M Cairns. Subs used: B Elmslie, J Cox, A Adam, R Davis.

Aberdeen: W Wardlaw; E Oag, P Nacamavuto, J Knight, A Hales; M Ryan, J Lauder; M Dixon, S O’Connor, N Fraser, M Reid, M Douglas, S Smith, G Ryan, C Eyre.Subs used: C McConnachie, T McGinness, A Hagart.

Referee: L Linton.