Reds come out on top after tough battle with Hamilton Bulls
Linlithgow 23 – 19 Hamilton
Saturday 31 January 2026
Report by David Mitchell with photos by Graham Black
Hamilton Bulls were the latest opponents in this Arnold Clark National League Division 4 fixture at Mains Park. Despite the home side winning the last 3 meetings against Hamilton, the games were generally tight affairs, so another stiff test was expected against in form opposition. A sizeable crowd was in attendance with quite a few away fans making the short trip east.
The weather was dull but dry as the game started and there was a breeze blowing from the clubhouse end. The Reds, were playing with the wind at their backs, quickly established good attacking positions deep inside their opponent’s half of the field and they were awarded an early penalty on the Hamilton 22 metre line. Jack Frame duly obliged with the first 3 points of the game. The kicking game was important, and the Reds regularly pinned the visitors deep in their own end for much of the half. This allowed the forwards and backs to combine well with accuracy and good ball retention skills to mount the pressure on Hamilton and they began to concede penalties at regular intervals.
From an attacking line-out, 5 metres from the line, Kyle Ormond found Oscar Davies with a pinpoint throw and the Reds pack attempted to drive over the line. However, the Hamilton forwards halted the drive only for Jamie Tulloch to burst out of the line-out and stretch over for a fine try that was converted by Jack Frame. The kicker then added a further 2 penalties to put the Reds in control with a healthy 16 point lead after 25 minutes of play.
Jamie Tulloch bursts away to score – see photo at top of article for his swallow dive
At this stage, the Reds pack were comfortably ahead in the scrummaging department and also able to disrupt the Hamilton line-outs. Unfortunately, one of the Hamilton centres had to be stretchered off with a bad knee injury and this seemed to inspire the visitors who then enjoyed a period of sustained pressure on the Reds goal line but without being able to cross for a score.
The home side then worked their way back into Hamilton territory and continued to pummel their way forward with some excellent handling moves involving many players able to keep the ball alive and it was no surprise when Jack Frame side stepped one defender, swerved around another and glided in for a try under the posts. He added the extra points to make the half time score 23-0.
Jack Frame, who contributed 18 of the Reds’ overall 23 points, scored a fine try
The consensus in the crowded clubhouse after the game was that the 1st half performance had been the most controlled and efficient performance of the season to date with a combination of good decision making, accurate interplay, strong defence, keeping the scoreboard ticking along nicely and the clinical execution of pre-planned and instinctive moves alike.
Unfortunately, Hamilton had other ideas for the 2nd half, and they stepped up their game, and the home side were suddenly struggling to keep the visitors at bay. In fact, the Bulls scored a try in the first few minutes of the half and were soon back looking for more scores as they sensed a lull in the Reds’ performance. The Reds did create 3 good scoring chances in the 2nd half, any of which would have kept the home team safely in the lead, but they were unfortunate with 2 scoring passes being dropped and Ross Tulloch being held up over the try line after some great build up play.
Ross Tulloch is held up over the line after another trenchant run
The Reds freshened things up with the introduction of all 4 replacements i.e. Cam McHardy, Kieran Cochrane, Eioan Magee and Cammy Murrie, in an attempt to slow down the Hamilton efforts.
At the other end the Bulls scored another 2 tries and 2 conversions to make the score a barely believable 23-19 with 10 minutes to play. This recovery from Hamilton was despite a dominant scrum performance from the home pack who were denied what looked like a certain pushover try when the ball inexplicably squirted out.
The home side was failing to penetrate the Hamilton midfield, and the Reds usual wide passing game was unusually ineffective on the day. However, despite some real unease in the crowd, the last 10 minutes passed without incident and the Reds squeaked home in a game with an unusual feature namely all 42 points were scored at the west end of the ground.
The captain’s face says it all at the final whistle!
Final score: Linlithgow Reds 23 – 19 Hamilton Bulls
Reds Team
Front row: Calum McKeown, Kyle Ormond, Andrew Graham
Second row: Fraser Mochrie (capt), Lewis McGill
Back row: Euan Mochrie, Jamie Tulloch, Oscar Davies
Half-backs: Archie Rusack, Jack Frame
Centres: Alfie Muir, Ruaridh Stewart
Back three: Ewan Curran, Luke O’Hara, Ross Tulloch
Subs (all played):
Cameron McHardy, Eioan Magee, Cammy Murrie, Kieran Cochrane
Comment
A well-earned victory but based solely on a very mature and efficient 1st half performance. The 2nd half was obviously below recent standards, and some additional creativity might be a worthy addition to the attacking repertoire of the Reds.
The scrum was very effective for most of the game and the line-out continues to be a source of good ball. The handling skills throughout the pack are excellent and blend in well with the back division. The physicality from both teams resulted in some massive hits with several stoppages to treat the wounded. The back division did not have the freedom in the wide areas that they have had regularly this season, and this was down to solid defensive play from the visitors.
This win takes the Reds to 46 points for the campaign and sitting 4th in Division 4 but only 7 points behind leaders Cartha QP in what is a tightly grouped top 4. With the 6 Nations upon us, the season now descends into a series of infrequent games with the next game being away to bottom club Moray on Saturday 28th February.