Here we are! The final showdown! One more hurdle to negotiate, one more river to cross. To go undefeated all season, home and away has been an incredible achievement and coaches Matty, Graham and Lewis and every player who has proudly pulled on the green jersey deserve huge credit but it will all be for nothing if it doesn’t go our way today. Currie Chieftains found this to their cost last season and they come today determined not to let another League title slip away. Hawick won at Malleny in October, our first win there for seventeen years, and we put today’s visitors to the sword with our most swashbuckling display of the season in January when everything clicked for us and they by their own admission had an off day. This counts for nothing today though as both teams start with a clean sheet and the ultimate prize to play for. We welcome Currie President Charles Mullins and the many who have travelled down from Malleny Park. We also welcome S.R.U. President Colin Rigby on the eve of what we hope will be a historic Triple Crown triumph.
I have never been prouder to be President of this great Club than I was last Saturday when the town turned out in force to cheer on the boys against Marr when a great defensive performance won the day. It was the biggest crowd Mansfield has seen for many a year and the atmosphere that was created was greatly appreciated by the team. The response to the appeal to the town’s school pupils to come with their banners and green jerseys was tremendous and the face painting and bouncy castle which are here again today were obviously a great hit. This season there is a great family feeling at the Club and to see our players’ wee bairns in their Hawick replica jerseys supporting their Dads brings a lump to the throat. At the other end of the scale the presence of so many Club legends at the far end of the stand this season is a tribute to the rugby the current team has been producing on the field. A huge thank you to everyone not least our vital sponsors for all your valued support.
Before last Saturday’s semi-final there was also a great atmosphere at our hospitality lunch. Eileen, Debbie and Lindsay always ensure that these occasions are special. John Jeffrey’s Q and A was memorable and when P C Brown was unfortunately not well enough to be with us we were able to pull in a replacement from the bench, one Stuart Hogg, which gave us the opportunity to congratulate him on what will, all being well, be his hundredth appearance for Scotland tomorrow, a tremendous achievement of which the Club and the whole town are immensely proud. A quote from a kind e-mail received from Marr’s Kevin Quinn indicates how Hawick continues to set the bar for the rest of Scottish club rugby. Although no doubt disappointed with his team’s exit from the competition he wrote “What a fabulous day the Robbie Dyes delivered yesterday. I’ve mentioned before the admiration I have for your Club and its achievements and yesterday you added to these. It was a fabulous day, Mansfield Park had a real buzz about it and the lunch and entertainment were awesome. There’s a real sense of something special brewing with your team, Matty and the other coaches are doing a great job and the players are responding well. Best wishes for the final”.
We have a chance to add further to our Club’s achievements this afternoon but so have Currie. Let’s hope for a flowing game of open rugby to merit the important occasion. May the best team win.
Ian W Landles
President
Hawick RFC
