Biggar kept pace with Heriot’s Blues at the top of Tennent’s National League 1 with a slender 12-10 win at home to Kelso.
It was a game that was fragmented and Biggar were well below top form, but it’s a win that keeps the Hartree Mill side three points behind, and with a game in hand over their title rivals.
Gala are two points behind them on 53, and with two games in hand over Heriot’s, but the trio look set to fight it out over honours this season.
Their nearest challengers are Kelso in fourth, on 46 from 16 games, which is as many as any side has managed this season; Biggar, for example, have played 14.
Biggar took the lead in 10 minutes when Angus Thomson secured possession and fed Ross Bradford, who created space for Rowan Stewart on the wing, and he crashed over in the corner for a 5-0 lead.
Kelso came back at Biggar, winning several penalties, but didn’t take advantage.
The game became very static, going from one set-piece to another, with almost all resulting in another penalty decision.
After Biggar conceded three penalties in fairly quick succession, they were reduced to 14 when Jamie Orr was shown a yellow card.
Eventually a Kelso lineout drive resulted in a pile of bodies on the line, with the referee deciding ball had been grounded, and the conversion put them 7-5 in the lead.
The second half began in very similar fashion, and for the first 10 minutes play was bogged down in midfield.
Biggar were able to put together a decent attack and forced play into the Kelso 22, leading to a five-metre scrum, and from this position forced their opponents to concede ground.
However, it still came as something of a surprise when the referee immediately awarded a penalty try and Biggar found themselves 12-7 ahead.
The game continued to be punctuated by the referee’s whistle, and, after another series of penalties Kelso had a simple kick to reduce the leeway to 12-10.
Biggar nearly added to their tally when a pinpoint kick from Fraser Jackson brought a lineout close to the line and the ensuing drive from the pack was held up over the goal-line.
Indiscipline again reduced Biggar to 14 as Andrew Jardine was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on, but there was no further scoring.
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