Big win for Ayr

At the far south of the country, after a very early start and a long coach journey, Ellon U18 heads were still on the bus when kick off happened, which led to an early leaked try after 2 minutes. The team then lifted their game and played some really good running rugby for the first half. This didn’t stop Ayr scoring two more trys this half. However after 30 minutes Ellis Swainston got quick ball from a ruck and broke down the blindside, offloading to Matthew Emmison on the 22 yard line, who ran the try in. Conversion was made by James Evans. Half time Ayr 21 Ellon 7. A respectable score against one of the top teams in Scotland.
The second half started badly with Ayr running in 5 tries as Ellon lost their solid first half composure. Once this was regained the young Ellon team pushed forward gaining penalties as they put some pressure on. One was kicked to the 5 m line, where a well taken lineout, and subsequent maul, led to a great drive and Man of the Match Tom Owen going over for a try. A mentioned should be made to Willie Prince for a great contribution at Hooker.
This led to a final score of Ayr 72 Ellon 12 and a long trip back up the road to Ellon.
Head Coach Ross Finlay said “That score really didn’t reflect the game”. “It was a much better performance than the week before”. “More work will need to be done on the training paddock before next week’s home fixture to Stirling County”.
Vice President Gareth Kemp said “It is certainly a hard start to the U18 season”. “All clubs in this league are strong, with the last two teams right up there with this Saturday’s fixture against Stirling”. “It will be nice to be at home after two long away trips in a row, and hopefully have a crowd down to support the lads”.