IT IS OFTEN said that semi-finals are nervy, cagey affairs because it’s the game that nobody wants to lose.

Irvine v Preston Lodge in the semi-final of the National Shield on Saturday was no exception and for 75 minutes it looked as though Irvine were going to sneak through to Finals Day on the back of an error-strewn game, until the Preston Lodge machine finally engaged top gear and dug deep into their resources to find the strength to score two tries that would see them through safely in the end.

There was a strong, cold wind blowing across the pitch as West Regional Shield winners Irvine kicked off and the early indications were good for PL – who had claimed the Edinburgh Regional Shield the previous week – as, firstly, Euan Higgins had a good run to gain 30 metres, evading plenty of tackles along the way and then, at the first scrum, the pack showed that they meant business by easily pushing their opponents back to provide clean ball for Dale Gordon and plenty of time for Graeme Patterson to send a long kick to touch in the 22.

There weren’t too many scoring opportunities for either side during the first 20 minutes, although Irvine had the first chance with a penalty from 35 metres which drifted wide, while PL generally kept possession and maintained good field position without threatening to score.

This looked set to change in the 22nd minute when Jason Riley broke from halfway and with plenty of support, as well as the defence stretched, it looked certain that PL would score but unfortunately the final pass went down.

Five minutes later, as PL continued to pile on the pressure, another great chance was taken away when the Irvine defence blocked the scoring pass from Patterson with a one-handed, deliberate knock-on, which resulted in Speirs being sent to the sin bin.

Having the extra man advantage didn’t help PL for the next 10 minutes as they made plenty of errors and although the scrum continued to go fairly well, the lineouts were proving to be a challenge and Irvine were making the most of any scrappy ball that came available.

They also gained more momentum as half-time approached when they were restored to 15 men, while PL were reduced to 14 as Chris Dixon was sin-binned following a skirmish at scrum.

Blair Cowan was doing his best to encourage his troops and he had a great take of a high ball to stop an attack but the score would remain an uninspiring 0-0 at the break.

PL tried hard to up their game as they started the second half but there were still too many errors and too many penalties by both sides, which meant that there was little flow to the game.

Raymond Mackie looked to have opened the scoring in the 45th minute following a good piece of play by Andrew Clark which unlocked the defence and set the replacement hooker free to score, but the Irvine defender did well to get under the ball and the referee had no hesitation in signalling that he had managed to hold the ball up.

The referee had been playing advantage for an earlier infringement but unfortunately Patterson’s shot at goal went wide.

The deadlock was finally broken in the 50th minute when PL were penalised for not rolling away on the 22 and Irvine grabbed the chance to give themselves a 3-0 lead.

Despite this setback, PL continued to work hard up front with all of the big boys such as Paul Voy, Darren Eales, Scott Rodgers and Bruce Stoddart trying to barge their way through the solid defence. Blair Robertson and Paul Glynn in the backs also tested the midfield but there was just no way through and every attack was thwarted, although Finlay Hughes and Riley seemed to have more luck as soon as they injected some pace, which Irvine couldn’t match.

However, the home side doubled their lead to 6-0 in the 58th minute as PL became more and more frustrated when Mackie got himself sin-binned and then they were penalised for not binding at the scrum, which resulted in some backchat and the loss of 10 metres which made the shot at goal much easier.

So, for the second week in a row, PL were going to come from behind and fortunately they seemed to realise that concentration and hard work would be required as the clock ticked on to 70 minutes. Riley was first to catch the eye with a great run that gained 50 metres.

Then, Eales finally managed to barge through the heart of the defence and, despite the efforts of several would-be tacklers, he stood strong and forced his way over the line. Once again, though, the referee decided that it had been held up, although he was in a minority of one for his decision on this occasion.

Putting aside the disappointment, it was apparent that the momentum was with PL and Irvine found themselves on the back foot, especially when they had another player sent to the sin bin for foul play.

It would still need some guile and skill to unlock their tight defence, though, and this would eventually come in the 75th minute when experience came to the fore.

Patterson passed to Clark and his dummy show-and-go was far too cute for the midfield defence. The gap opened up for him to dash through and touch down near the posts. Patterson was on target with the conversion and at last PL had their noses in front at 6-7.

This was a blow to Irvine and they couldn’t find the resolve to pick themselves up so when the PL pack got the ball following a lineout on the home 22, Riley was able to hold onto it at the back as the rest of the forwards forced their way towards the line; at the last moment he broke off and was unstoppable in breaking tackles to score a fine try.

The conversion was missed but it didn’t matter because the final whistle was only seconds away and PL had secured another remarkable victory to ensure that their unbeaten run continues for the season.

This was a big test and despite stuffy opponents, they came through with some style in the end.

The prize is a place at Finals Day, not at Murrayfield this year, but at Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld, on Saturday, April 19 where they will face Caithness, Caledonia Regional Shield winners, who narrowly edged out Borders victors Berwick.

Preston Lodge: P Glynn, F Hughes, A Clark, B Robertson, E Higgins; G Patterson, D Gordon; D Eales, P Johnstone, S Rodgers, B Stoddart, B Cowan, J Riley, C Dixon, P Voy.