Ellon beaten well for the third game in a row.

Final game of the day was Ellon First XV who went on after U18 at Highland. Travelling with a slightly changed team Ellon hoped to put in a better performance than the past two games.
Highland had a strong team out who really played a set game well. They didn’t have any clear super stars but their defence was organised and their attack well planned. Almost the opposite of Ellon who did have a defensive plan, but under the pressure it failed to hold up. When they attacked they did well, but lacked that final killer blow. Suspect it is the lack of confidence more than lack of skill, just need a few breaks to make a difference. Line out mauling was not firing well in attack for the Ellon boys as the Highland team broke the maul up, however in defence Ellon more than held their own against Highland. Highland are known for big bulling forwards and Ellon stopped them. This forced Highland to attack using their backs, and this is where the defensive organisation by Ellon let them down. Missed tackles and in the wrong places let the Highland team score too many tries. The young Ellon players performed well under immense pressure and the tackles on the big Highland Fijians showed good strength and skill. Ellon couldn’t take advantage of the Highland team when they went done to 14 for 10 minutes after a yellow card, but Highland took advantage when Phil Edwards went to the bin for 10 minutes for a high tackle (mainly out of frustration). The final score was well beyond what the game actually showed, with Phil Edwards getting the only points for Ellon in a penalty. Next up for the Ellon First XV is Caithness at the Meadows. Ellon have beaten Caithness every time at the Meadows and Caithness don’t like travelling to Ellon. Caithness seem to also be struggling this season so far, so the game should be a close one. Kick-off is 15:00 at the Meadows, Barbie will be on all afternoon.