The Herald reports

Hawks soaring after giving fledglings their wings
Published on 18 September 2012

Gary Heatly

Glasgow Hawks have gone to the top of the RBS National League during the first month of the campaign and their good form is in no small part down to a number of exciting young players.

The Old Anniesland club lost a lot of key players after relegation including the influential scrum-half Peter Jericevich and many wondered how the void would be filled.

The answer, certainly in the last three matches, has been provided by Sean Yacoubian, an 18-year-old who has just left school.

He won the man of the match award on his debut on September 1 against Biggar, and he hasn't looked back. Yacoubian learned his rugby at St Columba's in Kilmacolm and with the Hawks youth set-up and began pre-season training with the senior squad shortly after his birthday at the start of June.

He said: "I really enjoyed pre-season and tried to learn as much from the coaches and the senior players as possible during that time. I was in the second XV for the first week of the season, but on the Thursday before the Biggar match I was told I would be starting for the first XV. I enjoyed that match and it has been quite easy coming into the team because the experienced guys around me like No.8 Ross Miller have helped me fit in straight away and are always talking to me when we are out on the pitch."

Last Tuesday, Yacoubian, who starts a mechanical engineering course at Strathclyde University next week, is looking forward to this weekend's trip to Selkirk, for a top-of-the-table match.

"This one is shaping up to be a big game and it will be good to play in the Borders. We will need to work hard to get another win," he added.

Two fellow 18-year-olds, the prop Chris Barnes, and the back-row/second-row Peter Redmayne, are making their mark in the first team as are wing Tony Herron and full-back Andy Fleming.

Jamie Dempsey, Glasgow Hawks' co-coach, who has coached various age-grade squads at regional level in recent years, is delighted.

"One of the positives, if you like, of relegation for the club was that we lost a number of players and as such that has given youth its chance," he said. "These boys work so hard in training and are always listening to what we say."

This article was posted on 18-Sep-2012, 06:09 by Hugh Barrow.