On Saturday Garnock faced Orkney at Lochshore in the first ever senior fixture between the two clubs.
Despite the rain during the week the pitch was in good condition if a little soft underfoot. The match kicked off with Garnock playing toward the hub.
Garnock started brightly and were the first to trouble the scorers. Following a lineout deep in the 22 returning captain Lewis McGeachy broke from the maul to cover the last couple of metres and score in the corner. Conv missed 5-0
Orkney came back into the game through their big pack and worked their way downfield. Following a period of pressure they forced their way over the line. Conv good 5-7
The next 15 minutes were almost exclusively Garnock on top. During this period Garnock added a further three tries. The first came following pressure in the visitors 22 when the ball was spread wide finding young hooker Tom McGuire on the wing to score. 10-7
The next score came when from a scrum on the halfway line Ross Brocket broke from the base before feeding Jared Reekie who sprinted the final 40m to score at the posts. Garnock’s fourth try was possibly their best of the day. Slick handling by the backs set centre Cian Smith free and he calmly drew the final defender before passing to the supporting Jared Reekie to score. Both tries were converted 24-7
If the Garnock faithful on the touchline thought this was a taste of what was to come they were sadly mistaken. For the remainder of the half Orkney dominated possession and territory scoring three tries two of which were converted. 24-26
The half-time whistle came with Garnock on the ropes and needing to regroup. Unfortunately the second half could not have started in a worse fashion when the Orkney restart was knocked on. From the scrum the visitors produced a classy backline move to score.
In truth Orkney dominated the remainder of the game scoring at regular intervals. Garnock were on a number of occasions the authors of their own misfortune by conceding far too many penalties and making numerous individual errors. The only bright spot of the half came when Garnock added a further converted try through hooker Tom McGuire.
The final whistle came with Garnock defeated 31-61. The home side could have no complaints about the result and Orkney were without doubt the better side on the day.
Garnock side Shiells, McGuire, L Wynn, McGeachy, Watson, Miller, Wilson, Brocket, K Walker, R Walker, S Wynn, C Smith, Reekie, Anderson, McCrorie Reps McDermott, Crossan, Jacobson, J Smith
Garnock have no fixture next Saturday with their next game against West at Burnbrae on 9th November
