They say revenge is a dish best served cold and this was never more evident than at Old Anniesland on Saturday. This is not a reference to the pre-match chicken and leek pie which I am reliably informed was piping hot and extremely tasty. No, this was a plate of icy retribution for Gala as GHK avenged the 50 (URGH) point humbling they received at Netherdale earlier in the season with a dominant display on a wild and wintery January afternoon.

Despite the challenging weather conditions, both sides should be commended for endeavouring to run with the ball as much as possible which made for a very entertaining game.

The match got off to a flying start and it was the visitors that drew first blood. Gala had a scrum on the halfway line and spun the ball left to their full back who hit the gain line with great pace and scampered deep into GHK’s 22. He was hauled down with mere metres to go but managed to pop the ball up to someone in maroon who flopped over from short range.

GHK responded almost immediately with a score that’s beauty lay within its simplicity. A stable scrum on the far side of the pitch provided the perfect platform for the backline to run straight and pass accurately from right to left until it reached the arms of left winger, Danny Campbell. Campbell didn’t have much room to operate in but still managed to beat his opposite man and slide over for a fine try.

The hosts added a second soon after with a try that was perhaps not as easy on the eye but no less effective. This time, try scoring sensation Paul Henderson was on the end of a classic GHK driving maul in the far-right hand corner. The dynamic loosehead did well to peel round the edge and crash over unopposed.

After that score the visitors spent a lot of time within GHK’s half and their pressure eventually turned into points. A brilliant 50:22 nudge from their fly half resulted in a lineout five metres out. Then, after a number of pick and go’s close to the line, the openside flanker walked over unopposed. The fact that the first four tries were unconverted is more a reflection of the blustery conditions than the ability of the two kickers.

The final score of the half went to the weegies though as Grant Anderson danced his way through a couple of defenders to squeeze over to the left of the uprights. This time the conversion was successful, so GHK led 17-10 at half time.

GHK enjoyed most of the territory and possession in the opening ten minutes of the second half and capitalised on this dominance with two converted tries.

The first was scored by the lock-star that is Angus Troop. The lofty second row used his considerable frame to barge over from a quickly taken penalty five metres out.

The second was also a second for Campbell who was rewarded for coming off his wing to look for work as he received a perfectly timed inside-ball from Anderson ten metres out. Campbell’s quick feet did the rest and he dotted down to the right of the posts.

From there it looked like GHK would kick on and score a couple more tries as the backs cut loose. Craig Gossman, who was excellent all game, made a couple of searing breaks but couldn’t find the killer pass.

However Gala, back to fifteen after their scrum half sat down for some seasonable baked camembert, came roaring back with a fine score of their own. A scything break from the openside and a perfectly timed pass to the onrushing hooker resulted in a converted try and the boys from the borders suddenly had their tails up. These were nervy times for the hosts as Gala should have added another score soon after but for a sloppy forward pass. Another try went begging courtesy of a knock on close to the line. Eventually, some determined try-line defence allowed GHK to clear their lines and the game was brought to an end.

Full time GHK 31 – 17 Gala RFC

This was a really important victory for GHK after being humbled last week in Inverness. What will be most pleasing to all involved is that the performance matched the result against a strong Gala side that sits six places above GHK in the table. The pack held their own as the maul continues to be a real weapon and there was plenty of guile and invention in the backs despite the slippery pill.

There were a few stand-out individual performances that are worth noting this week. Craig Gossman was always a threat with ball-in-hand, particularly in the second half. Danny Campbell acclimatized to the wing quickly and finished off his two scores well. Ben Frame’s kicking from hand was clever and varied. He may have added a couple of steals to his stats too. Mark Preston put in an understated but seriously effective shift in the back row. However, there can only be one Man of the Match and this week it went to Angus Troop. The engine room regular never seems to have a bad game; always involved and carries harder than most. Well done Angus!