Friday 16 September: Southern Knights v Heriot’s

This Friday, Southern Knights begin the second half of the 2022 FOSROC Super6 Championship campaign where they host Heriot’s Rugby at The Greenyards (kick-off 7.45pm).

How to watch

All Friday games will be broadcasted live on free-to-watch channel FreeSports. FreeSports can be found on Sky HD channel 422, Virgin HD 553, TalkTalk 64, BT Vision channel 64, Samsung TV Plus and is also available on the FreeSports Player — www.freesportsplayer.tv. For those who live outside of the UK and Ireland, you can watch these games live on the Scottish Rugby website.

Be There

Secure your spot to watch Southern Knights host Heriot’s. Find your tickets here: https://www.citizenticket.co.uk/events/southern-kn…

Match Officials

Ref – Hollie Davidson
AR 1 – Ross Mabon
AR 2 – Jonny Perriam

Comments from the Coaches:

Bruce Ruthven (Southern Knights) said:

“David Colvine continues in the fullback jersey with Aidan Cross and Korie Winters starting on the wings.Paddy Anderson returns from injury to fill the outside centre jersey and partners Robbie Chalmers which gives a lot of experience to the midfield with Cammy Scott in the standoff position.Edinburgh Rugby’s Charlie Shiel comes in at scrum half as a welcome addition to the Knights squad.”

“The back row consists of youngsters Sam Derrick, Wallace Nelson and Rudi Brown who will be refreshed after their break and its Rudi`s first start of the Championship after U20`s stand down.Alan Ferrie stays in the middle row along with Jamie Campbell who both know it’s a big game for them in the boiler house. Russell Anderson Captains the side from Hooker and will look to lead with gusto with Jamie Jack and Edinburgh Rugby Luan de Bruin.”

“Front row substitute cover for the Knights comes from Fraser Renwick, Mike Mbaud and Edinburgh Rugby Grant Sheills.Erem Demeril and Jordan Miller cover the back 5 of the scrum with Douglas Crawford, Kyle McGhie and Finn Douglas covering the backs.The substitutions will play a big part in the game and will be keen to make their mark on the game.”

“The Knights are looking forward to Heriot’s coming down to The Greenyards on Friday night.We are aware it will be a tough test against a strong pack and a backline who if given the opportunities will cause a lot of trouble for us.”

“It’s important that we make a strong start to the match and compete for the full eighty minutes showing a more consistent performance.Having players back from injury and the addition of Edinburgh Rugby players has contributed to a good week’s preparation and the players are in buoyant mood.The players fully understand the task ahead and must front up to have a chance of winning on Friday night. The players are growing, the youngsters within the squad have gained quality game time to date so we feel now is the time to kick on over the next few weeks if we can keep the injury list down.”

Finn Gillies (Heriot’s Rugby) said:

“The same starting front 5 who took the field against Boroughmuir Bears last time out, a special mention is due for Josh Scott and Ronan Seydak who will become the 2nd and 3rd players to reach 30 caps for Heriot’s Rugby. Callum Anderson will make his first Super6 start at open side in the championship replacing the injured Iain Wilson. Jack Mann makes a welcome return to the squad starting at number 8 and we hope he picks up where he left off before his short break.”

“In the backs Jed Gelderbloom and Bruce Houston continue their partnership at 9 and 10, Ross Jones comes into replace Kyle Browne to partner Nyle Godsmark in the centres. Rory Steele has made a timely recovery from a hamstring injury and will join Dan King and Sam Pecqueur in the back 3.”

“The bench has a rather strange look to it this week as due to player availability we have had to go for a 4/4 forwards and backs split. Struan Cessford, Oban Baird and Dan Gamble (Dan will make his 20th appearance for Heriot’s Rugby) make up the front row replacements. We would like to take this opportunity to welcome Sam Wallace who after a very impressive start of the season with Heriot’s Blues will join us for the remainder of the championship and will make his Super6 debut from the bench this week. As a club we are extremely fortunate and grateful that we have the Heriot’s Blues who are continuing to provide a pathway for these young men to take their opportunity to play part-time professional rugby. We would also like to thank Glasgow Hawks who have loaned Euan McAra to cover scrum half for us after an unfortunate training incident has rendered Murdo McAndrew unavailable. The remainder of the bench is made up with Bobby Kay, Kyle Browne and Fraser Jones.”

“Our performance against Boroughmuir Bears was far below the levels we expect of ourselves and it was a long week off trying to figure out what went wrong. We have had to be really honest with ourselves and have collectively agreed that we need to reset and demand more from this group moving forward.”

“Southern Knights have had an extended break due to their fixture v Ayrshire Bulls being rescheduled, no doubt Bruce and his team have used this extra time wisely and will be well prepared for this fixture. Heriot’s Rugby do not have fond memories of playing at the Greenyards, the last 2 away trips have been the narrowest and most painful of defeats. We are under no illusion of how important this game is, we need to get ourselves back on track with a good performance and start to build some momentum for the last 5 weeks of the championship.”

Saturday 17 September: Watsonians v Boroughmuir Bears

Current table leaders Watsonians host runners-up Boroughmuir Bears at Myreside for the first of Saturday’s double header (kick-off 1pm).

How to watch

Watch this game live on the Scottish Rugby website, BBC Sport website and BBC iPlayer.

Be There

There’s still time to grab your tickets to watch Watsonians and Boroughmuir Bears go head-to-head at Myreside. Find your tickets here: https://www.citizenticket.co.uk/events/watsonian-f…

Match Officials

Ref – Ruairidh Campbell
AR 1 – George Pounder
AR 2 – Bob Nevins

Comments from the Coaches:

Fergus Pringle (Watsonians) said:

“There are 3 changes in the backs. Harry Paterson replaces Lomond MacPherson on the wing, Connor Eastgate starts at 12 with Joe Reynolds moving to the bench. Rory Brand starts at 9 with Murray Scott moving to the bench. There are 3 changes in the forwards with Ben Muncatser replacing Neil Irvine-Hess who is unavailable for selection. Pierce Phillips replaces Jamie Berrisford in the second row and Paddy Harrison gets his first start for Watsonians with Cal Davies moving to the bench. Karl Main returns to the squad on the bench.”

“The Bears have gone really well in the competition so far and they’re only going to get stronger with the return of some of their academy players and players on pro release. It’s a bit of a reset for us after the first round of games and a week off, having built some good momentum in the competition to the halfway point. We’re looking forward to a tough challenge at Myreside and we’ll need to be clinical and disciplined for the full 80 minutes to come out on top.”

Graham Shiel (Boroughmuir Bears) said:

“Callum Smith starts at Loose Head alongside Marcus Goodwin at Tight Head. Iain Carmichael retaining his position at Hooker this week after some very strong performances in the first round of games. Callum Atkinson and Jack Fisher remain the 2^nd row combination.”

“Euan Ferrie returns to the starting XV starting at 6, with Scott McGinley slipping across to No. 8 and taking over the captaincy. Scotland U20 captain Rhys Tait returns from international duties starting this week at openside flank. Ruairidh Swan and Jack Bergin continue in the half backs with Scott Robeson and Ronan Kerr in the centers. In the Back 3 Tom Brown drops out, being replaced by Adam Scott at Full Back and Callum Ramm and Joe Jenkins start on the wings.”

“Jerry Blyth Lafferty will start from the bench this week along with Brandon Sweet who covers LHP and Martin McGinley covering THP and again they have vital roles in making an impact to allow us to compete with Watsonians over the 80mins. Glasgow Warrior, Gregor Brown joins the Bears match day squad along with Scotland U18 captain and U20 player Liam McConnell and Paul Bogie covering the back five.Murray Johnstone covers scrum half, and we are delighted to have in line to make his Super6 debut, 17-year-old Scotland U18 & U20 player Kerr Johnstone covering the Backline.”

“Getting to the break was always going to be very tough for the Bears, so a weekend off was very welcome. The challenges only get bigger as we resume action this week against Watsonians in the first of 5 games in the second round. Whilst our return to Meggetland was brief, our two remaining away fixtures are within the City of Edinburgh boundaries, the first of two away weekends is 1k along the road at Myreside. Watsonians have a very enviable squad available to them and depth in abundance with quality, so whatever squad they field will be a challenge for the Bears this weekend. Most pleasing in our last outing was our ability to find ways to bring all the best bits of our previous 4 performances in the Championship to remain competitive for a full 80mins. We know that anything less than a carbon copy of that performance will not be good enough to be able to compete with Watsonians. This will be a challenge for the Bears and one that we are looking forward to. For all our players, these are the games that they want to play in and whilst we have competed well over the Super6 competition to date, we have yet to perform with consistency over a number of games and with intensity. The second half of the competition act as a good indicator of whether we are/have made progress as a squad and as a program since the conception of the Super6 competition.”

Saturday 3 September: Stirling Wolves v Ayrshire Bulls

After their fantastic effort against Glasgow Warriors, Ayrshire Bulls travel to Bridgehaugh to play Stirling Wolves in Saturday’s second instalment of Round 6 (kick-off 5pm).

How to watch

Watch this game live on the Scottish Rugby website, BBC Sport website and BBC iPlayer.

Be There

There’s still time to grab your tickets for the Stirling Wolves v Ayrshire Bulls clash here: https://www.citizenticket.co.uk/events/stirling-wo…

Match Officials

Ref – Jonny Perriam
AR 1 – Neil Muir
AR 2 – Alistair Watt

Comments from the Coaches:

Ben Cairns (Stirling Wolves) said:

“A whole host of players return from injury and unavailability and are joined by our 2 first year pros and Nathan McBeth who are released from Glasgow Warriors which has meant some real tough selection headaches for a change.”

“There are a total of 8 personnel changes and 3 positional changes to the starting side who lost heavily last time out. The backline sees Logan Jarvie and Ryan Southern return from injury and Fin Burgess available for the first time after his stand down period post U20s involvement. Euan Cunningham moves to the wing, Marcus Holden starts at 10 and Craig Jardine returns to his favoured position at inside centre.”

“In the pack, Jack Hill makes his first start for the unavailable Benedict Grant, George Arnott returns from injury at 6 and James Pow returns from injury to partner Max Williamson in the 2^nd row. Finally, Nathan McBeth comes straight in to start at loosehead.”

“Hamish Ferguson, Callum Cruickshank and Alex Thom move to the bench where they are joined by pro Angus Fraser and Callum Norrie, who has also been on an U20s stand down period. Finally, we welcome back two players, Adam Wood and Liam Brims, who have been long term injured but have worked so hard to get themselves fit and available. We cannot wait to see them on the park on Saturday.”

“There is no doubt we needed that break week more than most and it’s great to finally have more of our squad available for selection. We used the break as an opportunity to reflect and reset and will hit the 2^nd half of the season with renewed vigour.”

“The Bulls will travel with confidence after a tremendous performance up in Inverness, running Glasgow Warriors so close. They will be keen to continue their momentum having picked up an excellent victory versus Watsonians in their last Super6 encounter. They are a hugely physical team with strong foundations, and we know we will need to front up if we are going to give ourselves a chance.”

“Saturday brings a proper festival of rugby to Bridgehaugh with Stirling County’s boy’s and men’s sides taken on their Ayr counterparts at U15s, U16s, U18s, 2^nd XV & 1^st XV level prior to our kick-off at 5pm. We hope to see everyone making it a full day out at Bridgehaugh and look forward to finishing the day off on a high.”

Pat McArthur (Ayrshire Bulls) said:

“There is a bit of a reshuffle since our last outing a few weeks ago with Sione Vailanu, Alex Samuels (starting) and Simon Bergan (on the bench) released to play. Thomas Glendinning also starts in place of Jamie Sheddon who is injured.”

“The players are really looking forward to the game against Stirling after a well-deserved weekend off. We were happy with the performance against the Warriors, the team showed a lot of resilience, and improved on a number of areas we are working on. We will look for another strong performance this week against a Stirling team that will be hurting from their game against Watsonians.”