The maroon and golds, who have experienced a fluctuating season, went behind twice in the game but eventually prevailed over their undisciplined opponents.

The match was almost a mirror image of the last time the two sides met when Ellon lost in overtime after getting two yellow cards and a red.

In this encounter, Mackie were subjected to similarly stringent refereeing, but nevertheless let their composure slip when their tighthead prop was sent off after getting two yellows.

In contrast, Ellon’s discipline was nearly impeccable and their redoubtable forwards overwhelmed their opponents to secure the team’s first win in three games.

Scrum-half Andrew Ovenstone sealed the win for the home side with a late penalty and the pick of the tries went to Ryan Bowron who slithered through a couple of tackles to dot down in the corner.

Meanwhile, the Ellon pack put in the hard yards with the driving maul, two of which resulted in tries for Conor Slaven who made a welcome return from injury in the back row.

Picking up a win at this point in the season was important for Ellon as they have been struggling in the championship. Despite putting in some decent performances, they maintain a mediocre 40% win ratio and have still to savour victory away from home.