ABERFELDY RFC.......................36

HILLFOOTS 2nd XV....................10

THE Hillfoots second XV made the long trip north to Aberfeldy on Saturday with hopes of picking up a first win on the road this season.

The Rams were slow to get out of the blocks, conceding two tries within the first ten minutes.

However, captain Alan Steele steadied the ship and gradually the Tilly side fought their way back into the game.

A third try was conceded from a good handling move by Aberfeldy, but soon afterwards the Rams got the scoreboard moving with Iain Anderson burrowing over from close range after good build-up work from an increasingly confident Rams pack.

Fraser Christie was showing up well, making his Rams debut at stand-off, with some classy kicks and solid tackles.

Aaron Anderson and Andy Smith were also making their presences felt all over the field.

The second half kicked off with the defence continuing to be heroic against the well drilled Aberfeldy boys. However, a fourth try was conceded after about 50 minutes.

There then followed a sustained period of pressure from the Rams and finally a second try was forthcoming. Gavin Spowage pilfered the ball as Aberfeldy tried to clear their lines and did just enough to dot it down on the whitewash, dragging three defenders with him.

Play then swung back and forth in what had become a very open game. Unfortunately, one further try was conceded close to full time.

In the end, the final score of 36-10 to the home team was very harsh on the Rams who, after a slow start, had tackled their hearts out and battled to the end.

On January 1, it's the return of an old 'Foots tradition with the clubhouse being open for first-footing from 12noon.

A club spokesperson said: "Bring along any Hogmanay leftovers and the bar will be open for a wee hair-of-the-dog.

"There will also be a game of family touch – weather permitting – to help dust off the cobwebs. This is a family friendly event so we hope to see everyone in the park then."