Rugby: Shetland travel 500 miles...plus another 15
"THE boat was a bit choppy but nothing we are not used to," said Shetland coach Wayn Leslie of his side's trip from the most northerly islands in Scotland to Aberdeen on route to Duns.
Wayn was maybe understating their 14 hour 'trip on a ship'. Forty mile per hour winds battered the boat as it left Lerwick at 5.30pm on Friday and were it not for the fact that the Shetland players take the overnight crossing regularly to play all of their away games, a squad of hardened rugby players would probably have been very green around the gills.
Indeed, according to Wayn, the old boat that made the crossing from Lerwick to Aberdeen used to dip below the waterline in wild conditions - said to be about as fun as catching the flu.
The Shetland squad of 18 players, one coach and one supporter reached mainland Scotland at 7am - the cost of their boat trip being covered by their sponsors who happen to be a ferry company - and then embarked on reaching Duns.
The furthest the team had previously played in a competitive game before Saturday's Scottish Hydro Electric round two plate match was to Forresters in Edinburgh.
Yet, upon arrival in Berwickshire at 11.30am, the Shetlanders were told they would have to add another 15 miles to their 1,000 round mile trip to Scremerston as the Hardens was called unplayable by referee David Douglas - despite frantic efforts by home players and staff to keep the game in Duns.
So both sets of players crossed the border to Berwick. "It is very strange to be playing the Scottish Cup in England!", said Wayn before the game.
"It wasn't really a problem changing the game to Berwick from Duns, we have already travelled a fair distance."
As for keeping the rugby players off alcohol on the overnight ferry, it also proved no problem for Wayn. "We have a lot of young players in the team and the rest of the players stayed off the drink - that may be different tonight!"
The hardy Shetlanders even shivered when they reached a freezing Scremerston and assured everyone that the weather was a lot more hospitable back home, despite being around 500 miles north of Berwick and only 400 miles from the arctic circle.
Kick off arrived and Shetland, missing four players including one whose Up Helly Ya festival commitments meant he was 'damaging his liver' in Lerwick rather than Duns, were firmly camped in their own '22 straight away.
A burst to the line almost saw Duns grab an early lead but the visitors somehow scrambled the ball away right in front of their posts.
A small gathering of people gathered on the touchline to cheer on Shetland's defensive efforts, with Ann-Marie Nicolson being the only one brave enough to have travelled with the team.
Ann-Marie, whose husband John Roy started at prop at the age of 47, said: "It was a big journey. I have been down here before as I have family in Earlston but this is the furthest the team have travelled.
"It was a 14 hour ferry and five hour bus trip - it wasn't much fun! I only usually go to away games that are closer to home," which seems a bit of an understatement when every away match is an overnight boat crossing.
Another interested spectator is Robert McBain, a former Shetland player who had travelled from his home in Glasgow to see his former team-mates in action.
Accompanied by daughter and Shetland's youngest fan Isla, Robert remembered playing against Duns when they visited in 2004 and won 59-0.
However, five years ago Duns were a national division one side and Robert was surprised how dramatically they have fallen, dropping to East Division One and out of the Border League last season.
Yet, he also explained that Shetland have experienced similar difficulties to their southern opponents in recent years.
"A lot of our older players had had enough at the end of last season and it looked like the club may pack in but the younger guys have come in - a lot of them are only 17 years old."
Robert was also impressed with the warm hospitality from Duns, who gave the Shetland players lunch, dinner and breakfast as well as providing them a bed for the night, which is not always assured by other teams.
"I remember going to play Montrose and getting a plate of cabbage soup - you wouldn't have fed it to your dog!
"A lot of teams moan about coming to play Shetland but it is only once a season and you are well looked after."
Duns recent struggles were highlighted by the fact that only four members of the current Duns squad visited Shetland in 2004 - captain Jamie Renton, James Thorburn, Chris Archer and Dale Robertson.
"We have turned over a complete team in five years," added Derek Simpson, who was Duns RFC President when the Berwickshire team took the reverse journey to Shetland.
Full back Robertson may have played Shetland before, but the windy conditions make kicking difficult and he was off target with four conversion kicks in the first half as Duns rack up a 20-0 half time lead.
A further try was added in the second period for Duns before Shetland grab their first points in the plate competition this season and broke their duck against Duns.
Shane Jamieson struck a good penalty between the posts and all 100 spectators watching on the back pitch at Scremerston - around the same number who witnessed Berwick exit from the Scottish Cup by Perthshire on the main park - cheered Shetland's maiden three points.
Shetland returned the favour when they ironically clapped the first successful conversion at the seventh attempt by Duns to take the score to 37-3.
And a shout of "Keep going Shetland, we can still win this!" by coach Wayn Leslie may also have also had a touch of sarcasm after Jamieson added Shetland's second penalty three minutes from full time.
But there was also still time for veteran John Roy Nicolson to perform his legendary belly flop move that almost crushed a Duns tackler.
Nicolson joined his Shetland team-mates in clapping Duns off the field at full time, accompanied by a chorus of 'baaaas' - which turned out to be a Shetland rugby tradition rather than a dig at the perceived habits of Borderers.
"Great credit has to go to them," said referee David Douglas, who has officiated at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.
"They showed ture spirit and the game was played fairly by both teams - which you don't always see when refereeing at professional level."
Duns coach Alan Paterson also paid tribute to his team's opponents. "They came straight off the bus on a cold day and made a lot of tackles.
"I think the occasion got to us. We didn't play as well as we had hoped and they got into us. But the result tells the story. We are still in the competition and have a chance (of winning plate) but we shall just see who we get in the next round."
Shetland's players went on to enjoy their night in Duns and wearily boarded the bus to Aberdeen at 9.30am on Sunday to catch their ferry - which is said to have been buffeted again in force eight North Sea winds.
But with Shetland been and gone from Duns and the plate competition, the focus now returns to 1999 Scottish Bowl winners, who moved into the third round of the plate alongside Strathsprey and Jordanhill Phoenix.
And the Dinger's recovery from last season's doldrums would resemble a flaming bird rising from the ashes were they to reach Murrayfield ten years on from their last appearance.
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Weather for Duns
Thursday 17 May 2012
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 5 C to 9 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: South west
Tomorrow
Light rain
Temperature: 4 C to 8 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: North east
