HMS MONTROSE RAVAGED BY THE NATO LIONS
Carney Park, 25th March 2007 – A sodden pitch inside the Lion’s Den at Carney Park was the setting for the NATO Lions’ most resounding win so far this season. It took only four minutes for the Lions to make their mark, when Martin ‘Taff’ John scored the first try of the game, coming from a powerful attack straight from the kick-off. This inspirational start for the home side set the tone for the remainder of the game. The Lions didn’t give the Montrose any breathing space following the opening try. Fantastic support play, excellent ball handling, powerful rucking and a towering performance from Pete Woodson in the lineout prevented the opposition from getting their hands on the ball. With play not leaving the opposition’s half, the Lions continued to pound the boys from the Royal Navy, piling on the points with tries from Rick Pellicciotti and Cedric Victor backed up by Rolo Benglan’s rapier-like boot dissecting the posts with penalties and conversions. By the end of a staggering first quarter the visitors were 23-0 down with only 20 minutes played. The second quarter started with some promise for HMS Montrose, only to have it quickly quashed by Lions centre Bob Pallozzi who, having threatened to open up the visitor’s defence every time he had the ball in hand, scored the first try of the period which was again precisely converted. The ball seemed to be almost stuck to the Lions’ hands as Montrose tried in vain to regain possession as they fought to defend their line from another Lions attack before Lions captain Craig Farrington carried the ball over to score yet another try, which was once again converted, taking the score at the end of the second quarter to 38-0. The third and forth quarters saw the visitors push hard to salvage their pride with a number of promising breaks, but the Lions’ characteristically solid defence showed no sign of breaching as the home players repelled the Montrose’s best effort of the game by recovering the ball only a yard from their try line. That was the closest the visitors would get to scoring and the Lions ended the game as it had begun with excellent inter-play between forwards and backs, some dazzling footwork from new-comer Lawrence Tracey and the omnipresent force of back-row forward Sam Taylor ensuring that the visitors could only watch as both man of the match Rick Pellicciotti and Lions talisman Cedric Victor notched up their hat-tricks, whilst Rolo Benglan put the icing on the cake with a fine goal kicking display, taking the final score to 55-0. This was a fine team display from the Lions with both new and experienced players contributing to an emphatic victory in a good natured and exciting game, enjoyed by a fantastic number of cheering supporters. For more information about the NATO Lions Rugby Club, contact Ed Grey, 081-721-2971, or Craig Farrington, 081-721-2515.