Dundee HSFP 34-28 Gala: Rise of wing king James

• Crowd pleaser: Spectators get up close and personal with the players as Dundee's Danny Levison flops over the line for a try at St Andrews. Photograph: Ian Georgeson

It will be cold comfort for George Graham's brave Gala warriors as they were ejected from the cup after a heart-warmingly competitive encounter, but at least the Borderers will one day be able to boast that on this freezing afternoon in Fife their narrow loss owed much to the emergence of a genuine star.

Scottish rugby is a sufficiently small pool that it is rare for a true talent to emerge unheralded, but Dundee coach Ian Rankin believes that in James Fleming he has unearthed just such a player. When the quicksilver wing arrived at Mayfield last season from Perthshire, he had never played for any representative side. Now, Rankin believes he has the raw speed and elusiveness to win a professional contract, and perhaps one day challenge for a place in the Scotland side.

The Stirling University student will be shortly jetting off to New Zealand with the Scotland Sevens side, and on yesterday's showing that is richly deserved. Every time the cocksure wing got the ball he made huge yardage, on one run beating eight Gala defenders. Nor is his some preening speed junkie; when Gala finally got fed-up with his jinking runs and decided to take him down a peg or three, he stood his ground and swung like a fairground fighter.

Fleming's interventions made the difference for Dundee after a break of ten weeks since their last game, an impressive win at Ayr. If Dundee, who usually string together extended phases of play, looked ring-rusty, the same was not true of the little wing. He scored their first try, and displayed a glorious sleight of hand when passing out the back of his hand the decisive second-half try from No.8 Danny Levison. "Fantastic, just fantastic," gushed Rankin afterwards. "I'd pay a lot of money to see skills like that."

Rankin had much cause to be pleased with his men. Since early November they have been forced to train by playing touch on the beach, with the losers breaking the ice to take a dip in the Tay. With Mayfield unplayable, they were so desperate to play that this match took place on Madras FP's second pitch, overlooking the Old Course at St Andrews.

At times it looked as if that determination to play was misplaced, especially when Gala took an early lead through stand-off Lee Miller, one of the standout Borderers. Breaking down the blindside from a lineout, he chipped over the head of wing Stewart Barlow and won the footrace to touch down.

Fleming responded for Dundee, and from then on neither side was more than a score behind until Dundee scored a try in the final seconds. Although Dundee clearly shaded both possession and territory, George Graham's Gala were ferociously competitive, with professional lock Opeta Palepoi and classy No.8 Ewans Dods particularly impressive. Yet this cup tie remained as thrillingly close as it was full-blooded.

Dundee centre Harry Duthie took advantage of a fortuitous bounce to touch down in the corner on the stroke of half-time, but when Gala lock David Marshall was driven over shortly after the break, Gala edged into a 15-14 lead. Fullback Jamie Urquhart went wide to restore Dundee's lead after a long series of forward drives, only to see a Miller penalty draw the impressively dogged Gala back to within one point.

When Fleming's moment of magic conjured a try for Levinson and Urquhart struck a marvellous touchline conversion, Dundee moved eight points clear.

A length-of-the-field interception by Miller gave Gala late hope, and after an Urquhart penalty for Dundee the Borderers strung together a sublime 15-pass move that saw centre Mitch Walton dot down right in the corner to take Gala to within a point.

Yet just as the men in maroon began to believe, back came Dundee's forwards, with skipper Richie Hawkins burrowing through a heap of bodies for the last-minute try that gave a misleadingly comfortable sheen to the scoreline after a match in which these two sides had slugged it out for eighty action-packed minutes. This is what real cup rugby is all about.

Scorers: Dundee HSFP: Tries: Fleming, Duthie, Urquhart, Levison, Hawkins. Cons: Urquhart (3). Pens: Urquhart. Gala: Tries: Miller (2), Marshall, Walton. Cons: Miller. Pens: Miller (2).

Dundee HSFP: J Urquhart; S Barlow, H Duthie, C Strachan, J Fleming; R McKenna, A Dymock; N Dymock, D Russell, A Linton, R Hawkins (capt), C Cumming, R Milne, D Levison.

Gala: C Dods; F Hunter, M Walton, A Emond, R Livingston; L Miller, G Graham; A Johnson, L Roden, C Hogg, D Marshall, O Pelepoi, G Haurua, B Murray, E Dods.