Kelso beats Musselburg
We went all the way up to Kelso to watch them beat Musselburg in the last minute!
Return visit to our friends in Jedburgh and unfortunately Jed Forest had an away game all the way up in Inverness and we did not fancy the trip. So, choose to drive to Kelso instead.
About Kelso
Kelso Rugby Football Club are a Scottish rugby union team founded in 1876. They play their home games at Poynder Park, Kelso in the Scottish Borders.
The men’s team currently play in Scottish National League Division One and the Border League (the oldest established rugby union league in the world); the women’s team play in Scottish Womens National One.
The Game
It was cold, windy and wet with storm Darragh raging so happy to find a spot in the stands with the wind in our backs! Kelso started fierce but could not built their early lead further. I like how Musselburg 9 and 10 distributed the ball and kept Kelso away from the score line. Obviously with the terrible weather the ball was a bit slippery and the tactics of both teams was more “Pass & Penetrate” so lots of rucks and clearing out work. Not so much tactics and skill but the competitiveness and fighting spirit of both teams was the entertaining part of the game.
Offloading
No, counted zero off-loads, closest was a very successful cut pass by Musselburg 10 allowing them to penetrate the first defensive line. But with support players simply aiming to clear the following ruck and not even expecting an off-load an opportunity was lost.
Risk and Reward
How would you ask your team to play in this weather? The pitch was very surprisingly very good during the whole game, but wind and rain made handling difficult. Would you take the risk?
We were happy in the stands with the wind in our backs and our friends enjoying that fierce battle on the rugby pitch in their first ever rugby game outside the Netherlands. Both teams and the supporters in the stands, all were very disciplined. Pleasantly surprised the ref did not get any negative comments. I think she did very well, liked how she gave 10 meters for some backchat to keep it easy.
With both teams going at it and keep fighting until the very last minute, Scottish Border Rugby did not disappoint us!