Kirkcaldy Rugby Club head coach Quintan Sanft gutted at cup exit after dominating Howe of Fife for long spells

Kirkcaldy head coach Quintan Sanft (Pic by Michael Booth)

Kirkcaldy Rugby Club head coach Quintan Sanft was gutted that – despite restricting Howe of Fife to very few scoring opportunities – the away team still landed three tries when triumphing 19-17 in last Friday night’s National League Cup second round encounter at Beveridge Park.

Fraser Allan and Ryan Powles (2) crossed the whitewash for the National 3 victors against their National 2 opponents, who scored tries via Finlay Smith and Owen Bonner.

“I think they were only in our 22 once in the whole of the second half and they scored a try from it,” Sanft told the Fife Free Press. “We camped in their half for the majority of that second half.

"We had five opportunities to kick a penalty and one was missed but with the other four the boys decided to have a scrum or go to a lineout, forgeting that it was a cup game so there were no bonus points in it.

"So it was a disappointing one, especially with all the pressure we built. And we had a big advantage possession wise.

“You can never play expansive rugby on that heavy pitch which was not ideal. But it probably suited our game more than Howe of Fife because they always like to move the ball to their backs.”

Sanft also revealed that blindside flanker Steven Milne faces months of rehabilitation after going off early in the second half against Howe after sustaining a serious knee injury while making a tackle.

"Fortunately the league is finished this season but losing Steven is a major blow,” the head coach added. “Hopefully he can recover fast enough for next season.”