Aberdeen Grammar head coach Ali O’Connor wants to see more of the sense of urgency that was prevalent in his side’s most recent outing as the domestic season resumes tomorrow after the festive break.
Grammar snapped a 10-match losing streak as they moved out of the relegation zone with a 30-17 league win at Howe of Fife on December 17.
O’Connor is looking for a repeat performance from his players at Rubislaw in another crucial fixture at the bottom of National 1 against Hamilton.
He said: “We’re keeping our fingers crossed we can carry on where we left off at Howe of Fife. There was a sense of desperation due to the position we were in and urgency about our play which I hadn’t seen for some time. To be blunt, we wanted it more than them.
“We spoke about it at training this week as the reverse was true in our fixture at Hamilton in September when they beat us. The guys know that was the case which is why I’m confident there will be no lack of motivation for Saturday’s game.”
O’Connor gave his squad some time off during the festive break but is pleased to see many of his players have continued to train in preparation for the second half of the season.
He added: “Some of the players took part in the Aberdeen Select v Exiles game on Boxing Day and many have been training over Christmas, which is a positive sign they are taking their rugby seriously.
“We had our first training session at Aberdeen Sports Village on Wednesday and the players looked sharp. Unfortunately, Chris Jollands and Kyle McFarlane are unavailable for this game but the good news for us is that Christian Brew returns at number eight, while Conor Lavery returns at full back.
“Doug Russell played so well in Conor’s position at Howe of Fife. We couldn’t leave him out of the side so he will switch to the wing.
“Tom Aplin was our man of the match there and he deserves to stay in the side, too. After a tough run of games we can take a lot of positives from our last performance and we’re looking to keep it going.”
