GREENOCK Wanderers' hopes of avoiding being dragged into a relegation dogfight suffered another blow on Saturday as they fell to a narrow 9-3 defeat at the hands of Linlithgow, writes John Dyer.

As the scoreline suggests, much of the game against the newly-promoted West Lothian side was played between the two 10-metre lines, with defences on top and closing down each other quickly.

Linlithgow, who took the step up from East 1 at the beginning of the season, opened the scoring with a penalty from their stand-off with eight minutes on the clock.

Wanderers' co-captain McDaid came agonisingly close to giving the hosts the lead with a try a few minutes later, but the ball was knocked out of his hands close to the line and the chance was lost.

Linlithgow extended their lead after the Greenock defence was penalised for a high tackle on the visitors' stand-off after a mazy run towards the line, but as the interval arrived there was still plenty of hope in the Wanderers camp that they could turn things around after the break.

The Wanderers' coach made changes in the pack at the interval, with Struan and Hoodless coming into the front row in a bid to combat Linlithgow's increasing dominance in the scrums.

The second half continued in a similar vein to the first, with few clear-cut chances for either side, though Wanderers' full-back Boag was tackled just short of the line after an excellent run out of defence.

Wanderers had to be content with a losing bonus point from a game dominated by defences against Linlithgow.Wanderers had to be content with a losing bonus point from a game dominated by defences against Linlithgow. (Image: alex craig) A further penalty for the visitors increased their advantage to 9-0 with 15 minutes to play, though Wanderers reduced the deficit five minutes later when McDaid made the decision to kick for goal from a penalty.

It was a sensible decision as it earned the home side at least a losing bonus point on an afternoon where tries were beginning to look increasingly unlikely, with both teams defending very well - and with a downpour in the closing stages making play impossible, it quickly became clear that that bonus point would be as much as Greenock would take from the game.

Wanderers' league programme now takes a back seat as the first XV players turns their attention to a National League Cup tie away to Cartha Queens Park, being played at Dumbreck this Friday, November 1, at 7.30pm.

Elsewhere on Saturday there was much for the Wanderers' second XV to smile about as they recorded a fine 28-24 win at home to their table-topping Strathendrick counterparts in West Reserve Division 2, moving Wanderers up to second place and reducing the gap between the two sites at the top of the division to only two points.

Wanderers' ladies' first XV fell to a 17-8 defeat away to West of Scotland in their latest fixture on Sunday, with Katie Purves scoring the Greenock side's only try and earning the West team's accolade as their Greenock player of the match, while Catriona Gallagher added a penalty.

(Image: Contributed) In the junior boys' section, the U18s and U15s both lost to Hamilton, by 33-28 and 40-28 respectively, while the U14s lost 62-40 at Dumfries.

The club's U14 girls lost 11-3 away to Ayr, while the U12 girls had two wins, a draw and a defeat.

Finally, the Greenock P7 boys beat Helensburgh 8-5.

Greenock Wanderers' club sponsors are MMSEARCH; the ladies are sponsored by Straps of Gourock and Brow House Cosmetics.