BT Premiership ROUND-UP | Currie Chieftains push past Heriot’s to secure home semi-final

3 Mar 2018

Currie Chieftains secured a home semi-final in the BT Premiership today as they completed a seven try rout over Heriot’s (19-47).

The Edinburgh derby was the only fixture to survive the winter bite, as Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre, Oriam, played host to the first ever indoor BT Premiership game.

The indoor 3G pitch provided the perfect platform for a free-flowing, fluid and high-tempo affair.

Chieftains dominated early possession, however, their charging attacks were brought to a halt as Heriot’s aggressive defence prevented them from crossing over the whitewash.

Heriot’s were first on the scoreboard following some effective work at the line-out which lead to a powerful driving maul, with Iain Wilson gathering from the back to dive over the whitewash.

Robbie Mulveena ignited the attack for his side’s next try as he punctured through the defence before offloading to Robert Kay who scampered in at the corner. Ross Jones added the extras.

The early lead sparked a retort from Chieftains, which came in the 30th minute following a number of phases and hard carries from the pack, as captain Fergus Scott scampered into the corner to score. Charlie Shiel bisected the uprights with the conversion.

Shiel was soon on the scoresheet once again, as he swatted off numerous defenders to clamber his way over the line, bringing Currie into the lead for the first time in the game.

As the clock approached the 40 minute mark, the men from Malleny extended their lead when full-back Ben Robbins dashed over the whitewash.

HALF-TIME: Heriot’s 12 – 19 Currie Chieftains

Chieftains continued to assert their dominance into the second-half, as Harvey Elms and Cammy Gray combined cleverly and swiftly to create space for Robbins to exploit and seal the crucial bonus-point try.

Buoyed by the growing tally on the scoreboard, Currie launched another attack when Mike Vernel weaved his way through the opposition’s defence to score.

A scintillating solo-effort by man-of-the-match Shiel saw him launch into action once again, displaying an enthralling turn of pace to win the foot-race to the whitewash.

After a spell of possession in Heriot’s 22, Chieftains grabbed their seventh try when Robbins cantered over the line to complete his hat-trick.

Heriot’s rallied and salvaged a score through Wilson, who muscled his way through the defence to score, with Jones adding the extras.

In the dying moments of the game, the Goldenacre side battled valiantly as they looked to secure a bonus-point, however, Currie’s rapid defence hindered their ability to cross over the line, and Heriot’s hopes of reaching the play-offs were brought to an end.