The Herald reports today

Wholesale changes vs minor squad adjustments


CURRIE

Ally Donaldson has experienced everything from championship triumph to tumult and tristesse during his time at Malleny Park, so it is hardly surprising that nothing fazes the former stand-off who has graduated with distinction into coaching.

Last year was a strange affair for the Balerno club, with some resounding victories accompanied by unexpected reverses and a flurry of draws. Amid their fluctuating fortunes, Donaldson prepared himself for the now-annual experience of bidding adieu to his old squad and ushering a new crop of players through the revolving door.

As one of life's pragmatists, he realises it is pointless complaining about the situation. Better to accentuate the positives and deal with the factors you can control. "We are building a new team for the future and hope to gain some confidence and stability in the years ahead," said Donaldson, whose players launch their RBS Premiership bid on Saturday with a potentially treacherous away trip to Galashiels.

"It promises to be a very tight league, with Ayr and Gala continuing where they finished off last season. Heriot's and Melrose look to have recruited well, but I think, in advance of the kick-off, it is a competition where anyone can beat anyone else.

"We have had quite a turnover in players, but we have a new side evolving with lots of talented young guys in the ranks, and several of last year's Scotland under-18 team, including George Horne [brother of the Glasgow Warriors player, Peter] and Harvey Elms [nephew of the Malleny favourite, Alan]. It is a challenge, but I like that."

It is always hard to gauge the potential of a side in the build-up, especially when they include such a peripatetic bunch as Currie's class of 2013. Donaldson's coaching team has been bolstered by the involvement of Mark Cairns, the international centre, and Edinburgh's Sean Cox, but it will surely take time for the new squad to bed down.

After all, it is not just a case of four or five changes, it is virtually a whole XV. There's David Cherry, from Tynedale; Isaac Millar, from Stewart's-Melville FP; Reece Patterson, from North Berwick; Alex Penman, from Falkirk; Callum Kerr, from Musselburgh; and Adam Alexander, from Kelso. Then there is the New Zealand trio of Joe Reynolds, Ehan Pollock and Elliot Mitchell, who might turn out to be as useful on a rugby pitch as Dan Carter or Dame Kiri Te Kanawa: some will shine, and others will struggle.

In Donaldson, they have one of the most level-headed figures on the Scottish circuit; a teacher who is accustomed to dealing with Kipling's twin impostors. Currie may not win the Premiership, but, as usual, few opponents will relish travelling to their ground.

EDINBURGH ACCIES

By contrast with Currie, Accies have a pretty settled group with which to launch their campaign. And what a start: Scotland's oldest club will be locking horns with the newest, Glasgow Hawks, in the sort of no-prisoners-taken contest which can stir the blood of even the most sanguine of spectators.

Edinburgh's teams have struggled to make an impression in recent seasons and Jonny Else, the Raeburn Place coach, appreciates that 156 years of tradition don't count for much while the trophy cabinet lies empty. To that end, he has put his troops through a rigorous pre-season schedule and they demonstrated their intent with a six-try display against near-neighbours, Watsonians, last Saturday, which illustrated their ability to blend potent attack with driving forward power. Else summed it up thus: "The lads are champing at the bit. They have all worked really hard and they want to prove what they can do in the months ahead. It is a settled side, one with plenty of ambition, and although we could hardly have asked for a tougher start, that is what the Premiership is all about. There are difficult matches, week-in, week-out, so we have to show that we can keep gaining points and momentum."

The coach doesn't anticipate any massive transformation from the white-knuckle ride which Accies and the majority of the competition's other clubs experienced last winter but he has not plumped for bringing in foreign recruits. Instead, his side will be bolstered by the return of Jamie Sole, son of the 1990 Grand Slam-winning captain, David, from London Scottish and Newcastle Falcons, while also snapping up a pair of Edinburgh University luminaries, Dave Bates and Neil Aitken, and Nick Barron from Murrayfield Wanderers.

In the bigger picture, Accies are proceeding, after what seems like decades, with a controversial development of their facilities, which has divided opinion, although not among the rugby collective.

As they contemplate a bright future, Else realises the wafer-thin margins which exist in the Premiership milieu. "There was so little to choose between most of the teams last season that you could be in relegation trouble, then win one game and suddenly find yourself challenging for a spot in the British & Irish Cup," he said.

"I do think standards are rising and the league is full of young guys with lots of desire and dedication, so it will be tight again. We have to hit the ground running and it will be difficult against Hawks, because we have had some fair old scraps in the past. But the boys want to get out there and show their abilities

This article was posted on 21-Aug-2013, 09:03 by Hugh Barrow.