A young Bulls side won the consolation competition at Howe of Fife’s 7s tournament

May 12 2011 by Andrew McGilvray, Hamilton Advertiser

A YOUNG Hamilton side who were taking part in their first sevens tournament emerged with the Ferrier Cup from Howe of Fife’s competition last weekend.

Beaten 24-14 in their first-round match against Premier 1 side Stirling County, it initially looked like it would be a short afternoon for the Lanarkshire lads.

However, their first game in the consolation competition saw them dump Sea Bass 40-5, and then reach the final with a 31-5 win against Greenock Wanderers, thanks partly to Chris Stannage and Scott Murray, the latter of whom was playing his first competitive 1st VII match.

The final saw Hamilton pitched in against Dundee HSFP, another Premier 1 side.

The Dundee lads got off to a good start with two early tries but tries from Ross and Craig Inglis and Taz McLaughlin brought the young Bulls back into it.

Tamati Rhind and Grant McCowan worked hard to keep things going for Hamilton, who eventually ran out 26-21 winners.

Credit to Callum Crawford, Andy MacFie and Lyall Calder, who all played their part throughout the day’s matches.

Head coach Dale Lyon said: “Considering how limited our preparation has been due to league commitments, picking up some silverware – even though it was in the consolation competition – is an excellent result for these young Bulls.

“Once we worked on our shape and patterns, which had been spoken about, we looked good.

“Special mention has to go to young Scott Murray, playing his first senior rugby game and not looking out of place, which augurs well for his inclusion with the seniors next season.

“We have Jed-Forest this weekend and the Royal Scots the following week so we really need to step up another level or two.”

Hamilton are at the Jed-Forest 7s on Saturday and, as with all of the Kings of the Sevens series, it’s a straight knockout, with no consolation tournament.

The action at Riverside Park starts at 1.30pm and Hamilton are up against Peebles in the opening round.

The tournament also features Melrose, Edinburgh Accies, Watsonians, Gala, Selkirk, Berwick, Haddington, Langholm, Stewart’s Melville, Heriot’s, Kelso, Hawick, Boroughmuir and the host club.