BT CUP FINAL

MELROSE 23

AYR 18

By Elena Hogarth

Pictures: Alan Graham

AYR agonisingly missed out on a dream double on Saturday as they couldn’t add the BT Cup to their season’s silverware collection as Melrose beat them 23-18 in an exciting match at Murrayfield.

Seven days after the Millbrae men defeated the bordeers at the Greenyards to claim the BT Premiership title, it was the Borderers who snatched the win in the last 90 seconds of play thanks to a Nyle Godsmark try.

It was neck-and-neck the whole game, with both sets of players matching each other in every area. Ayr got off to a flying start, winger Danny McCluskey scoring from kick-off after a powerful charge for the line from captain Pete McCallum.

It went unconverted from the touchline by stand-off Frazier Climo.

Melrose hit back immediately, prop Jamie Bhatti barrelling over for an unconverted try. The first half ended honours even thanks to a penalty apiece by Climo and his opposite number Jason Baggott.

There may not have been a lot of points scored in those opening forty minutes but there were plenty of opportunities for Ayr, prop Steven Longwell blasting his way up the touchline, and centre Ross Curle shooting off at various points.

The set-pieces were evenly matched, and so was the penalty count. Tempers flared throughout but it never spilled out into nastiness, and that was reflected in the good-natured crowd. Ayr looked like they had the bigger travelling support at the cavernous Murrayfield but Melrose had brought a pipe band with them to more than make up for their smaller numbers of fans, and they created a great atmosphere for the players to compete in.

And what a competition it was in the second half.

No sooner had Baggott put Melrose in the lead with a penalty than Climo added one to tie the scores again.

Ayr scrum-half David Armstrong is a man light on the scales but heavy on the workload, and he put in another shift full of hard graft on Saturday. He spotted a gap and raced through it like a whippet, flanker Will Bordill on his tail, ready to take the ball over the whitewash for a try.

Ayr fans were delighted to see Bordill score on his final appearance in a pink and black shirt (he has already moved to London for work). A young man who came to Ayr on a dual contract with Glasgow Warriors, he was quickly taken to the Millbrae faithful’s hearts with his robust commitment on the field and he will certainly be missed.

He has been part of a formidable back row with McCallum and Blair Macpherson, the three of them tireless in their efforts on Saturday as they have been all season, McCallum leading his players with aplomb, working well with the older members of the squad and looking out for the youngsters.

Also making a final appearance was centre Curle, whose two interceptions would have reminded Ayr fans just what they will be missing when he retires.

Stafford McDowall (18) and 22-year-old Archie Russell are primed and ready to take over the mantle, but nobody will be quite as maddeningly mercurial as Curle.

His exciting runs came to nothing on Saturday, alas, but Climo did stretch Ayr’s lead to 18-11 with another penalty.

He was soon spread-eagled on the pitch, having taken a knock off the ball. As he was attended to by the medical team, referee Lloyd Linton let the game go on and it was there that the momentum swung to Melrose.

They had the man-advantage with Climo down, and winger George Taylor raced away for a try, converted by centre Craig Jackson, to draw the scores with ten minutes to go.

There were chances for Ayr but Melrose just wouldn’t let them take them. Soon, they were down in Ayr’s half and centre Godsmark was away for the try.

It was unconverted, and with a minute and a half to go, Ayr got a penalty, went for the line-out and drove from Melrose’s twenty-two. The ball went dead though and a fairy-tale ending for Ayr was not to be.

“All credit to Melrose for taking their chances," said Ayr head coach Calum Forrester.

“They’ve had a great season, and we want to congratulate them. It’s been a brilliant year for Ayr too and I thank our players and my fellow coaches for all their hard work in the league and cup competitions. They’ve done the whole club proud.”