There was a massive disparity in the sizes of the two sides but the skill sets and fitness of the Mackie lads held them in good stead for the first half



Mackie actually took the lead after 15 minutes when a speculative kick ahead by Struther Tweakathon was guddled by the Police full back. Quick as a flash young Connor Reid was on him and turned the ball over. Ryan Brown , making his debut at stand-off was on hand to swoop and dive over the line with the ball. The conversion was landed successfully by Calum Reddish who has a kicking style not dissimilar to the old Scottish captain Peter Brown. With constant prompting by Pedro Owen the pack held out well and indeed with a bit of calm could have landed a couple of tries



As ever when points aren’t scored the opposition seem to take advantage of the situation. Two late tries at the end of the first half gave the police a lead at half time which they scarcely deserved 7 - 15



The second half restarted with Mackie again in the ascendency. Tries could have been scored but were scorned and despite valiant efforts by the forwards it was difficult to get on top of the much heavier if less mobile opposition. Late tries saw the police run out 25 - 7 winners but did not reflect the performance. Ben Newell tackled his heart out, Keiran Ferguson went looking for the ball and became increasingly effective and there were strong showings from Jamie McConnachie and Dave Austin. Dave Garden also started to show a welcome return to form.



Overall the scene looks good at seconds level with at least 15 players unavailable. Man of the Match was Conor Reid who although prone to errors and a few squint throw ins absolutely put his body on the line and really set a good example for those around him