Aberdeen Grammar co-lead coach Greig Ryan hopes a return to Rubislaw can help his side pick up their first National 1 win of the season tomorrow.
Defeats at Kelso and Gala have made for a tough start to life in National 1 for Grammar, who were relegated from the Premiership last season.
But Ryan insists lessons have been learned from the challenging start to the campaign.
He said: “Going to the Borders is difficult for any side and to have two long trips there to start the season was always going to be a challenge for us.
“This is not an easy league and both Gala and Kelso were promotion contenders last season.
“You look at the teams in this league and see the likes of Melrose, Gala and Watsonians in it.
“They are established clubs who have been at the top of Scottish rugby for many years so we’re under no illusions about how tough it will be this season.
“But we’ve also got two of our longest trips out of the way and we’ve learned a lot as a team from those games.
“It’s important we take those lessons into our first home game against Stirling County on Saturday.”
Stirling the first visitors to Rubislaw
Grammar welcome a Stirling County side which finished ninth in the league last season to Rubislaw and Ryan is anticipating a fast-paced, open game for his side’s first home match.
He said: “I know Stirling County coach Craig Deacons and played against him. I expect his team will play the game the way we’ve come to expect from Stirling teams over the years.
“They play a fast, flowing expansive game and that’s how we like to play too.
“We’ve got a good forward pack and some great backs too so hopefully we can test them on Saturday.”
Gordonians chasing a hat-trick of wins
In National 3, Gordonians have made the most of starting their campaign with two home games by winning both but assistant coach Ryan Morrice insists the team has yet to hit its stride.
He said: “We’ve had two good wins but we’re still far from reaching our potential and we’ve yet to produce an 80-minute performance.
“We’ve played well in patches but there is still a lot more to come from us.”
Morrice guided the club to promotion from National 3 when he was head coach and he believes a game-by-game approach is key to the team’s hopes of challenging again this season.
He said: “It takes consistency and I know it’s the old cliché but taking it one game at a time is so important.
“We have an eight-game block of games to start the season before the autumn internationals begin and we will have a good idea of where we stand and what we’re playing for at the end of October.”
League reconstruction has upped the ante
The need to be in the hunt at the top of the table is even greater due to league reconstruction with the current 12-team three National League set-up changing to four leagues of 10 next season.
Morrice said: “With league reconstruction happening at the end of the season and the shift to leagues of 10 it is going to hit National 3 hardest when you consider teams dropping down and those coming up from the regional leagues.
“At worst you won’t be in the top half of the table and in contention.”
With two wins out of two Gordonians hit the road this weekend for their first away match at Whitecraigs, who finished bottom of National 2 last season.
Morrice said: “We know Whitecraigs well but it will be interesting to see how they line up compared to last season.
“I’d imagine there has been significant changes in personnel there but if we can focus on our game and perform we can get a result.”
