Davie Carson refuses to concede defeat in Highland’s bid for a top-four finish in National 1 despite last week’s defeat to Gala.
Highland fell to a 27-5 loss in the Borders, which means fourth placed Gala are now six points ahead of the Inverness outfit.
With six matches still to go, Carson feels all is still to play for if his side can string together a run of form.
He said: “Bar Melrose next week, we have Stirling, Watsonian, Aberdeen and Dundee, and then the big one at the end of the season against Kelso.
“From many of them we will be looking to take four or five points. We are looking for a good run-in and a good finish.
“The top three are probably away now, but Gala have a tough few games. The aim will always be to finish as high as we can, so we are certainly focusing on getting above Gala and finishing fourth which would be pretty credible for us.”
Revenge mission against Stirling
Highland are back in home action this weekend, when they host 10th-placed Stirling County.
Carson has a number of injury concerns stemming from last week’s game, with Sean Blair, Seumas Ross and Gordon Gregor sidelined, while Grant Jamieson is still to be assessed.
The Highland boss is eager to step up to the task against a Stirling outfit who defeated his side 34-17 in October.
Carson added: “We are getting to the time of the season where niggling injuries have caught up with people, and we are getting a wee bit thin.
“We are delighted to be back at home. The Borders trips are long days – we are away from 7.30am to 11pm at night.
“It will be nice to get back home and have a full house at Canal Park. Everything is sold out for Saturday, which is fantastic.
“Stirling County turned us over down there. It was one of those games where we didn’t turn up.
“It was probably our poorest performance of the season, but we really kicked on after that.
“The game has a derby edge to it, with them being another of the Caledonia sides. Along with Grammar, they are fighting for their lives.
“These are some of the hardest games to play. They have got to give everything, as they need points desperately. They will be fighting for every ball they can get to try and get four or five points off us.”
Highland’s under-18s are also in action at noon in a bumper day of rugby at Canal Park, when they host Perthshire in their Scottish Cup quarter-final.
Orkney looking to maintain progress
Orkney are aiming to continue their strong form in 2023, when they host Allan Glen’s in National 3.
The islanders are sixth in the table, but just four points behind their fourth-placed opponents.
Having been defeated 43-17 when the sides met in Bishopbriggs in October, Orkney head coach Derek Robb sees this weekend’s match as a chance to show how far his side has come in their first season back in the national setup.
Robb said: “Allan Glen’s are a good side. When we visited there we were well beaten at the end of the 80 minutes.
“They capitalised very quickly on our mistakes. In my estimation they are probably one of the best sides at transitioning from defence into attack.
“This weekend we have just got to build on how we have progressed in 2023, and look to really look to play with the intensity we showed against West of Scotland and Howe of Fife.
“It will be a fair old test and I expect it to be a bit of a humdinger. The top five are all very competitive, and we want to see how we are progressing and how our younger players are starting to cope with these types of opposition.
“We will get a good indicator of where we are at after this Saturday. If we play to our potential as a side, we will be very competitive. I’ve no doubt about that.”
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