Nostalgia: Kirkcaldy battle for place in rugby Scottish Cup Final

Not content with taking the Division Three title, the Blues also found themselves hitting the headlines when they made it to the semi-final of the Tennents Scottish Cup.

In front of a crowd of almost 2000 at Beveridge Park they overcame Dundee High School FP by 33-18 in the quarter final to take their place amongst the elite of Scottish Rugby

Standing between them and a place in the final were the Borders giants Melrose - Division One champions and undoubtedly the best team in the country.

There was some controversy beforehand - Kirkcaldy complaining to the SRU that the choice of Gala’s Netherdale gave their opponents an unfair advantage - however their protest fell upon deaf ears and the game went ahead in the Borders on April 27, 1997.

It proved to be a step too far for the Blues - Melrose took their place in the Scottish Cup Final by 36-9 but Kirkcaldy emerged with heads held high and reputation enhanced.

Kirkcaldy had stated that, having accepted Netherdale under protest, they would do the rest of their talking on the field and never had a Blues side expressed themselves more eloquently.

It was a passionate battle of total commitment in which the Division Three champions looked better than the Division One champions for much of the game.

The final result undoubtedly flattered Melrose and few would argue that the match turned on a controversial incident in the 14th minute when Kirkcaldy captain Willie Anderson was sent off, accused of stamping on flanker Mark Donnan.

The towering prop was distraught long after the game and his act seemed more careless than malicious as he enthusiastically went for ruck ball and made contact with the Australian’s head.

Even then for lengthy spells it was almost forgotten that Kirkcaldy had a seven-man pack such was the ferocity of their involvement.

It was Kirkcaldy who got the game’s first points on the board through a John Mitchell penalty only for Scottish full-back Rowen Shepherd to bring his side level after eight minutes.

With score tied at 10-10 the deadlock was broken on the hour mark. A rolling maul carried the ball up to the Kirkcaldy line and Donnan got the vital touch down.

A couple of minutes later Melrose’s ran on to an inviting ball and crashed over. Another two minutes passed and Melrose were out of sight as Moncrieff again did the damage.

It was unfortunate for Kirkcaldy that, in one of their few second half attacks, they spilled the ball leaving four unmarked men in midfield who shipped the ball to Moncrieff to complete a grand score.

However, as Kirkcaldy left the field their standing applause was thoroughly earned.