An unusually nice afternoon saw us visit Myreside for matches against Watsonians Warriors. although Boroughmuir were also there, we played 3 matches in total, all against teams from Watsonians.

Match 1 – Dunfermline 3 – 7 Watsonians A
Dunfermline got off to a shaky start against a decent Watsonians team, who ran in 4 early first half tries without reply. Unfortunately our pre-match drills of passing along the line went out of the window from the first whistle, and we kept taking the ball into contact needlessly when passing to supporting players would have been the better option. We also need to be aware to carry the ball high so that we can offload/pass out of the tackle, and avoid getting wrapped up by the tackler. The lack of continuity in attack and inevitable turnovers were punished by a quick running and passing Watsonians team, but Dunfermline got themselves back into the game with some well taken tries and drew the rest of the match 3-3, so despite the loss, we finished the game on a better note.

Match 2 – Dunfermline 6 – 3 Watsonians B
A few words between matches from the coaches to focus on the passing game paid off early in the next match, as the boys responded with a more fluent attacking game, which the next Watsonians team struggled to contain. The defensive organisation was generally OK, tackling is getting more and more consistent, but the boys will be a little disappointed to lose 3 tries off first phase ball by missing key tackles. But a lot better in attack, with all of the team looking eager to get on the score sheet, with lots of good support running.

Match 3 – Dunfermline 7 – 6 Watsonians C
This was the best game of the three against another strong Wastonians team. An end to end game, where both teams made the other work hard for their tries by some committed tackling. Nevertheless, some very decent tries were scored from both teams with Dunfermline just edging it.

All in all a good outing, with improvements throughout the day. A clear need for the team to come along with their game head on and perform from the start, but once they got going, they always looked likely to score.
There is much improved tackling in the last couple of weeks, though still plenty of work to do in practice to ensure that we all make our tackles.
In attack we need to ensure that we look for the right pass to support runners (usually on the outside), carry the ball high, avoid contact where possible, and avoid cutting back inside into traffic. It’s a passing and evasion game!

Andrew D – Eager to get involved in attack and showed his pace to finish an excellent try scoring move.
Andrew S – Running good support lines, and an improved tackling display.
Austin – Most improved tackler in recent weeks, and showing more confidence in his play
Duncan – Another good all round performance. Solid in defence and effective going forward.
Jamie – Uses his pace to good effect in attack and when covering in defence.
Mackenzie – Looked good with ball in hand with positive running. Busy in defence.
Matthew – Another improved performance, with a couple of very good tackles made and keen to get involved in attack.