Endrick won Saturday's league match at Fintry against Oban Lorne. There was seldom any doubt that they would win but at the end the general consensus of opinion among the players and the surprisingly good number of spectators was that it had been a dreich game on a dreich day. Oban are currently at the foot of the tale and are struggling for numbers. Their cause was not helped when only 14 players - no subs - arrived in time for the kick-off. They were assured that their last man would arrive and he did eventually take the field, but only for the final ten minutes of play.

From the start playing conditions were difficult. Rain fell all afternoon, the surface was slippery and the ball was like a bar of soap. Not surprisingly handling errors by both sides were frequent and the frustration caused perhaps led to regular choice of the wrong option so that Endrick were rarely able to make use of their one-man advantage.

Endrick did most of the early attacking but it took them 13 minutes to put points on the board. The Oban pack which had made light of their numerical disadvantage conceded a penalty well inside their own half. A quick tap and an accurate pass to Callum Ferguson who judged his run to perfection gave the Fintry men their first score and Sam Greenock landed the conversion.

Play was mainly in the visitors' half but with the Oban pack holding their own up front, Endrick's dropped or delayed passes kept scoring opportunities to a minimum. When Oban did have the chance to counter, their backs showed up well with some straight running without making a break until they were crowded out. Five minutes before the interval Endrick scored their second try when Andrew McDonald came into the line and made valuable ground down the right before lifting a huge crossfield kick towards the opposite corner. Steven Bastock at speed took the tricky ball beautifully and raced in to score with Sam Greenock again adding the extras.

Oban started the second half in determined fashion but without threatening the Endrick line and soon the home side moved back to the attack. After ten minutes they were camped in front of the Oban line but no one seemed able to take control of the ball for either side. Attempts to hack clear were blocked until the ball went loose behind the Oban line and Fraser McKay put an end to the ping pong by touching down for the third try. Sam Greenock's kick gave Endrick a 21-0 lead with half an hour left to secure the bonus point. That however was not to be and the only other score of a scrappy second half followed a couple of minutes later when Oban kicked a 28 metre penalty.

Endrick travel to Ardencaple on Saturday to play Helensburgh in a league match, kick-off at 3 o'clock. 'Burgh have so far won all four league matches played and will prove a real test.

TY