Garnock took to the pitch knowing that a victory of any sort over visitors Greenock Wanderers would secure the National 4 league title
The pitch was wet underfoot and overhead conditions varied from occasional blue skies to torrential downpours. The tough conditions made fancy ball handling moves difficult however Garnock adapted to the conditions used their big ball carriers to good effect.The front row dominated in the scrum and Matthew Shiells, Conor Wilson and Joe Chapman made ground with every carry.
In the second row Jonny Watson was, as always, dominant in the lineout and a willing carrier. David Miller put in a cracking performance with his heavy carries and strong defence.
All season the Garnock back row has dominated their opponents and today was no different. Davy Ramsay-Millar put in his usual outstanding defence and carried hard when required. Stuart Wilson tackled and jackalled and never seems to fail to break the gainline with ball in hand. No8 Ross Brocket put in yet another powerful performance dominating in almost every carry and regularly making big yardage.
Garnock scored tries at regular intervals throughout the game and despite the difficult conditions nine of the ten tries were scored through the backs .
Half backs Keir Walker and Gareth McCrorie controlled the areas of the pitch in which Garnock played and were clever in the choices of where to handle and when to kick for territory. Centres Rory Dominy and Jared Reekie threatened with every carry regularly breaking the line and mopped up any opposition attacks.
Due to the conditions wingers Sam Wynn and Tony Woods saw relatively little clean ball however they both made the most of every occasion the ball came their way. Fullback Rory Walker was assured in everything he did from clearing his lines to joining the backline in attack
The backline scorers were Jared Reekie (3), Sam Wynn (2), Tony Woods, Rory Dominy, Keir Walker and Rory Walker.
All of the replacements were used with 20 minutes remaining and all made an impact on the game. Ally Anderson was strong in defence and took one sublime catch from a box kick clearance. Tom McGuire and Fraser Craig tackled and carried when asked with the former also accurate with his lineout darts. Replacement prop Kenny McDermott maintained the scrum dominance and much to the delight of the crowd and his teammates scored the try of the day. Taking a short ball close to a ruck he breached the defensive line outside the 22 before brushing off tacklers and powering to the line.
Eight of the ten tries were converted by Keir Walker and the referee blew for full-time with Garnock comfortable victors by 66-7.
There is little doubt Greenock were unable to field their strongest team and were a young squad. To their credit they fought hard for the full game, caused Garnock the occasional problem and were rewarded with a score.
Garnock secured the National 4 title with a game to spare and were presented with the trophy on the hub balcony following the full-time whistle. Garnock’s remaining fixture is on 6th April away at Murrayfield Wanderers.
Garnock squad:- Shiells, C Wilson, Chapman, D Miller, Watson, S Wilson, Ramsay-Millar, Brocket, K Walker, McCrorie, Wynn, Dominy, Reekie, Woods, R Walker, reps McGuire, McDermott, Craig and Anderson
