Posted by Gordonians 20(10)
Hillhead Jordanhill 15(12)
A battling second half performance provided a 14-man Gordonians team with an impressive win against Hillhead Jordanhill at Countesswells.
Tries from Rory Riddle and Finlay Lennox combined with the reliable boot of Angus Winning made it seven wins from seven for the hosts.
Hillhead Jordanhill scored two of their own and had led at half-time through scores from Damien Genocchio and Whyte, but fell away in the second-half.
Gordonians overcome first-half setbacks to swing momentum
It was Hillhead Jordanhill who opened the scoring with a try when they sliced through several missed tackles to set up their full-back Genocchio in the corner.
Rory Harte’s conversion struck the uprights but things got worse for Gordonians before they got better when Ross Buchanan was sent off for an unmaliciously high tackle in the 26th minute.
However, this incident seemed to rejuvenate the hosts and the winger, Riddle was able to exploit a massive overlap to bring Gordonians level a few minutes later.
Winning added the extras but Hillhead secured a converted try to retake the lead during a frenetic period before half-time.
Their winger, Whyte was able to take advantage of having an extra man following a valiant Gordonians defensive effort.
The reliable boot of Angus Winning took the hosts back within two points on the brink of half-time though and the game was very much still in the balance.
In the second half there was a noticeable momentum change, with the hosts winning several penalties and putting their opponents under sustained periods of pressure.
Despite this, it took a while to break the deadlock, but the hard work of the Gordonians forwards pack – particularly Matthias Schosser and Thomas Williams – eventually paid dividends.
It was the back rower, Finlay Lennox who crossed from close range with around 15 minutes remaining as the resilient hosts continued to build momentum.
Indeed, patience was key to pulling the move off after several previous scoring opportunities had been squandered by a lack of discipline.
Winning added another conversion before slotting a crucial penalty soon after to make it a two-score game.
This seemed to take the wind out of Hillhead’s sails and they were limited to a penalty kick at the death to secure a losing bonus point to return to Glasgow with.
The result means that Gordonians remain unbeaten at the top of National Three with a visit to Greenock Wanderers next week.
Gordonians Head Coach, James Greenwood:
“It was always going to be a tough game, especially when you look at Hillhead’s results in previous years. We didn’t fire straight off the bat and you could tell before the start of the game that they were well up for it. We have to look at how we started the game, but I’m proud of my guys. I’ve seen them lose those type of games last year in National Two when that would have been a game where we probably came apart in. They dug in with a man down, playing with 14 men for most of the game, so they showed good resilience to come together from that. It wasn’t one of those days for pretty rugby, so we just had to get it done. There were some good standout performances, but ultimately we just had to get it done.”
On the momentum shift in the second half:
“I was really impressed with the players. The average age of the team is young and showing that kind of maturity and resilience is usually something that you get with age. The senior guys stood up and the younger guys followed suit. Overall, I’m pleased with the performance.”
Gordonians: Mills, Taylor, Patterson, Winning, Stephen, Busby, Horberry; Williams, Brown, Schosser, Robertson, McIlroy(c), Buchanan, Moriarty, Lennox
replacements: Ferdinand, Salisbury, Riddle, Cousin
Hillhead Jordanhill: Genocchio, Dicks, Brown, Halliday, Whyte, Harte(c), Ebbit; Jackson(vc),Perston, Eakin, Colvin, Thomson, Weir, Welsh, Sanders
replacements: Shearer, McGoldrick, Mullin, To
Red Card: Ross Buchanan (Gordonians)
Crossing the Whitewash 