Rugby: Melrose give Currie food for thought

CURRIE coach Ally Donaldson admitted his side had no option but to take in on the chin after hopes of a first Scottish Cup triumph were dashed by a 31-8 semi-final defeat at fired-up Melrose.

"We are certainly not panicking because that is only our second defeat in the past year," said Donaldson who refused, nevertheless, to take comfort from the fact Currie are now free to concentrate on securing the premiership which they lead with a five-match run-in.

"I lost in the semi-final as a player so I know there is absolutely no upside from going out at this stage."

"Credit Melrose who played really well – we've no complaints whatsoever. Melrose's defence for the whole game was outstanding. Our defence has been similar all season but it was lacking a bit today and that was probably the difference.

"Even at the end when we were attacking they kept us out. It was a bad day for us but, if we learn from this, that will be something."

Unwilling to take refuge in the fact that a series of cancelled fixtures had possibly left them rusty while, of the handful of games that have been fulfilled this year, two were against opponents whom they thrashed by 70-point margins, Donaldson hinted that one tactical manoeuvre only would have been done differently.

He was referring to how stand-off Matthew Scott had been hampered by a shoulder knock but by the time the decision was taken to withdrew the under-20 internationalist, serious damage on the scoreboard had accrued.

"We should have brought Matthew off at half-time but he stayed on," he said.

"Then we lost two tries ... and he just could not defend."

Indeed, an absorbing clash swung dramatically Melrose's way between the 46th and 48th minutes when man-of-the-match James King notched his own second try then broke upfield to create a touchdown for Callum Anderson which, coupled with Scott Wight's two conversions, put the contest out of sight at 24-3.

Currie did come back with a try from Jamie Thomson and their spirit was summed up in the dying moments when Ross Weston backtracked brilliantly to tackle Fraser Thomson when the full-back threatened to go clear, the match being a long time lost.

But regardless of injuries – Ally Hamilton and Alun Walker also took knocks – it was hard to see any side living with Melrose on this form.

Coach Craig Chalmers confirmed that the need to atone for home and away league defeats by Currie had been a driving force.

"We looked at the videos, noted how Currie employ a rush defence, and tried to ensure we went around them this time," he said. "In doing that our forwards gave us the ideal platform."

The early loss of club international Hamilton was clearly a blow, but even he was unlikely to have offset the spine of experience running through the Melrose team where James King, Wayne Mitchell, Rob Chrystie and John Dalziel are all ex-pros.

So far as Chalmers is concerned, centre King is well worth tempting back to the paid ranks after looking set to drift away from rugby when redundancy at Border Reivers was followed by an apparently humdrum stint in Italian club rugby.

In front of Rob Moffat, the watching Edinburgh coach, King ran the game and on one occasion skilfully employed the type of chip ahead Currie could have done more often faced with suffocating pressure in midfield.

If Melrose were disciplined and solid Currie had a maverick streak that extended to trying to run possession from far too deep and their undoing on a day when they will play much worse and yet still win against less committed rivals came down to a few handling errors.

After Johnny Smith and host captain Scott Wight had exchanged penalties, there was little Currie could do to prevent the slick handling that saw King ghost through a gap for the opening try. That said, the penalty against the visitors in the lead up for obstruction seemed harsh.

Melrose's second try by King for a 17-3 lead after 46 minutes had its origins in a Currie fumble but genius prevailed again when Callum Anderson romped in out wide after a studied build-up.

Jamie Thomson's third try of the season for Currie was no more than a defiant gesture by a side among whom James Johnstone and Alun Walker worked tirelessly but the general flow continued with Scott McCormick dummying his way through from the scrum base for Wight to land his fourth conversion.

No league and cup double for Currie this season but with four current under-20 caps in the line-up, chances will come again – unless pro contracts are dispensed with the effect of breaking up a team who can perhaps exploit the fact that their only title challengers, Ayr, face a draining final battle with Melrose a week before the expected decider at Malleny Park on 1 May.

Scorers: Melrose: Tries: King (2), Anderson, McCormick. Conversions: Wight (4). Penalty: Wight. Currie: Try: Thomson. Pen: Smith.

Melrose: F Thomson, C Anderson, J Murray, J King, B Allen, S Wight, captain, R Chrystie, R Higgins, W Mitchell, K Cooney, G Dodds, G Elder, J Dalziel, R Miller, G Runciman. Subs: L Gibson, A Gillie, S Johnston, S McCormick.

Currie: J Smith, W Moala, J Johnstone, A MacMahon, D Fife, M Scott, R Snedden, J Cox, A Walker, A Hamilton, A Adam, captain, R Wilson, M Cairns, R Weston, J Thomson. Subs: N Scobie, J Taggart, S Burton, G White.