THE HERALD REPORTS

KEVIN FERRIE, Chief Rugby Writer December 26 2006

At this wonderful time of year for bearing glad tidings, it came to pass on Saturday that The Herald proclaimed that Currie were Scotland's new champions.
Ally Donaldson, their coach, just happened to be looking my way at the time, some sixth sense telling him – OK, it was pretty damn obvious – that the person I was in contact with by mobile phone was at Old Anniesland. So when freelance journalist Ron Evans said the final whistle had been blown and Hawks, champions of the previous three years, had beaten Ayr, all that need be said was: "You've won it!"
Currie's 39-26 win over Heriot's, completed an hour earlier, had meant only Ayr could catch them and the tension had been building. What was particularly special was that the release was provided by the individual who more than any other has flown the flag for Currie as Donaldson launched the celebrations by throwing himself into the arms of his nearest clubmates.
The setting – the tinsel-strewn downstairs bar at Goldenacre – may have been somewhat incongruous since initially there were few more than Currie's first team squad around. Any sense of anti-climax rapidly began to lift, though, as their most loyal supporters decanted from the bar upstairs to share the moment and Donaldson could begin to savour the achievement. "The last calendar year has been really successful. A year ago we were close to the bottom of the league, but we went on to finished fourth last season and got to the cup final," he said.
Man and boy he has worked towards this as the first player who brought the name of a club founded in 1970 to international attention when playing for Scotland A throughout the 1990s.
"It feels like all my life," he said. "I've probably been at the club since I was 10 or 12. I was born in Currie, I went to Currie High School. All my best friends are part of the club. I don't know if that makes it any more special because I don't know the difference."
He obviously put all the credit for the title triumph down to his players, in particular key men who have been around a long time such as Andy Adam, their captain, Mark Cairns, Ross Weston and Davie Officer, and was particularly proud of how they had responded to cruelly late defeats in their previous two matches. "People of lesser character would have had the stuffing knocked out of them after we lost those games the way we did."
Saturday was another test as their sprightly start ended when an Ally Warnock pass was intercepted by Marc Teague, who went in under the posts. The Heriot's winger was to match the achievement of Toulouse's Clement Poitrenaud against Llanelli the previous week, by scoring four tries but finishing on the losing side.
By the time he got the last of them Andy McMahon (2), Warnock, who also kicked 14 points, John Cox and Kevin McShane had all crossed for Currie.
As Donaldson reflected further on the achievement members of the backroom team were warmly thanked, too. However, there was a special tribute to Graham "Greco" Hogg, very much the mastermind behind Currie's rise from obscurity to a place among Scotland's leading clubs.
"Greco has been here a hell of a long time," said Donaldson. "He's been a massive part of it. He was the biggest influence on my career as a player and a real guide to me as a coach as well and he'll feel the success more than anyone."
A former Scotland player and Scotland A coach, Hogg is still at Donaldson's side at virtually every match and training session and he saw their achievement as symbolic. "It means a lot," said Hogg. "We've been working for this for a long, long time. To see Currie as the top club in Scotland is great. This is something other clubs can aspire to as well. If Currie can do it why can't others?"
If it was all a bit amateurish, Hawks insistence on sticking to a 3pm kick-off having denied Currie any onfield celebrations, this was not the time to quibble. Had Ayr kept the race alive they might have won it on their own turf in the final league match next month, but as the always down-to-earth Donaldson observed, they might not have. "Some people said it would be nice to win it at Malleny, but we just wanted to win it," he said.
They have done so and the most consistent team in Premier One certainly deserved it.

Note from Ed re Kevin Ferrie's observations on "amateurish" arrangements

The reason for the 3.00 p.m. k.o v Ayr emanates from a desire to encourage match sponsorship.In the absence of SRU accreditation payments and the removal of all SRU prize money clubs have to look at all means of income generation to survive
With this in mind Premier 1 clubs including Currie agreed where possible to go for 3.00 p.m. k.o.s and this was discussed through the Premier 1 Forum .Hawks v Currie match last week at Malleny Park had a 3.00 p.m. k.o.
This then allows clubs to market matches more easily as 2.00 p.m k.o.s make for rushed pre match arrangements especially when several club grounds are used by schools on Saturday mornings
This is not always possible however as some grounds like Goldenacre where Currie won their title on Saturday don't have floodlights
These arrangements were all processed through the SRU as required

This article was originally posted on 26-Dec-2006, 10:50 by Hugh Barrow.
Last updated by Hugh Barrow on 26-Dec-2006, 22:02.