HARRY PINCOTT

FOR the second week in succession, Glasgow Hawks could be crowned BT Premier Division 1 champions. Five points from their rearranged game against Aberdeen GSFP at Rubislaw this afternoon would see them clinch the title for the third season in a row, only the third club behind Hawick and Melrose to achieve that feat.

However, over the past few years Rubislaw has not been the happiest of hunting grounds for the Glasgow club, and their task has not been made any easier due to the absence of three key forwards in Eric Milligan, Steve Begley and Richard Maxton


Aberdeen, who are likely to have pros Ben Prescott and Stuart Corsar available, are almost out of the relegation equation, and a home win would certainly clinch their spot in next season's ten-team Division 1.

All three of the other rearranged Division 1 games have a bearing on who goes down. Stirling County look certain to be one of the three clubs to drop out, with two from Boroughmuir, Biggar, Currie and Stewart's-Melville to join them.

Four successive league defeats this year have dragged Boroughmuir into the bottom four, and their home fixture with Biggar has a winner-take-all look about it, with the losers likely to be down and out.

Boroughmuir introduce veteran flanker Peter Knight, a no-nonsense player whose spirit and commitment could turn out to be just what his side need.

At the start of the year, few would have given the Colleges much of a chance of escaping the drop, but five wins in a row have pulled them out of the bottom two and another victory against Hawick at Inverleith today will certainly boost their survival chances.

Kevin Reid and Barrie Keown are back for Hawick, but they are without Bruce McNeill, Zander Bruce and Ryan Hogg, who will be in Cardiff.

Currie, away to Stirling, have the former Scotland centre David Officer available after a lengthy absence, while prop Colin Black, who has not played in the top team since the beginning of last season, is fit again to return to a squad minus Gavin Scott and Fergus Pringle. A Currie win would ease their worries.

This article was posted on 11-Feb-2006, 08:26 by Hugh Barrow.