Finishing the year unbeaten in this season would exceed Gordonians’ wildest expectations.
The Countesswells men top National 3 heading into their final game of 2018 at Haddington tomorrow, with back Graeme Crawford determined to see their record remain spotless into the new year.
They are a point clear of second-placed Newton Stewart with two games in hand – against St Boswells and Murrayfield Wanderers – in the second half of the campaign.
Promotion is a realistic prospect for Ryan Morrice’s side, whose only dropped points came in a 27-27 draw with Carrick in September.
Crawford, who returned to the team in the 52-5 return win over Carrick last weekend, wants Gordonians to achieve the unexpected with victory in East Lothian tomorrow.
He said: “It would definitely be a great achievement and it’s a target that’s in our sights. We want to finish the year unbeaten and take it from there.
“Going into the second half of the season without losing a game certainly builds confidence within the team.
“At the start of the season we had no hopes of getting promoted but we want to get this year closed out first.”
Last week’s performance was even more impressive considering Gordonians had only played once since November 3 due to the autumn internationals and Murrayfield withdrawing from their trip to the Granite City.
Five huge away fixtures loom in the second half of the campaign. As well as a trip to Melrose to face St Boswells, they will also be on the road to the two sides second and third in the
table, Newton Stewart and West of Scotland, as well as Caithness and Orkney in the final month of the season.
Crawford added: “We’ve got a lot of hard away games to come.
“When it comes to the end of the season, winning these games would be massive. heading We set the goal at the start of the season to finish in the top half and I think we’ve reached beyond our expectations.”
Haddington are rooted to the bottom of National 3 and have won just once this season.
Their visit to Countesswells in September resulted in a comprehensive 74-5 victory for the home side and Crawford would certainly take a repeat performance.
He said: “We’ve seen they’ve had a few close results but it’s definitely one we’re targeting away from home.”
