After a 17 Month break from competitive rugby the men's squad travelled away to Dalziel RFC for a pre season friendly. It was a braw day for forwards rugby as the rain pelted down most of the afternoon but despite the damp conditions there was some great rugby on show in spells.

Dalziel, having played the week before against Hamilton, started stronger and after a couple of missed tackles allowing them to get a couple of quick scores in the first 10 mins. The Cougars soon kicked into life though as the forwards started to dominate and take control of the scrum and break downs. There was a lot of kick chasing as both teams sought to gain territory but eventually following a strong Corstorphine scrum inside the Dalziel half and a few phases of attack on the Dalziel line that familiar face of David 'Shaka' Heslop stepped and reached his way over the white wash for the first try of the afternoon for the Cougars. Which was duly converted by Taylah Muru-King.

Head Coach, John MacDonald, made several positional changes in the back line during the game with a few players being tested in positions they may not normally occupy. However this didn't stop the backs being an effective unit as skipper Strachan and co continued to try and break down the Dalziel defensive line. Ultimately the conditions (and a bit of rustiness) meant the ball was knocked on more than anyone but the front row would have liked. The scrum continued where it left off in 2019 as it remained a strong platform for the backs to work from.

Dalziel continued to utilise the 30 odd players they had to rotate and bring fresh legs on and scored a couple of well worked tries to keep the score board ticking.

It was late in the final period when the Cougars scored their second try. After successfully contesting a Dalziel line out the Cougars then went through 6 successful phases that stretched the Dalziel defence from one side of the pitch to the other and back before Taylah Muru-King spotted the space in behind the defensive line and chipped through for Captain, Paul Strachan, to dot down his first try of the season. Well deserved after the way he carried the ball all afternoon. Again Muru-King accurate with his conversion.

All in all a good return for the Cougars, despite the result. A big thank you to Dalziel for hosting us and we wish them well for the season ahead in West Region 2.

This week we have an in-house game, Reds v Blues, that will see the squads split evenly so everyone gets the opportunity for a run out before the League season starts on 4th Sept.