THE HERALD REPORTS

Moir’s men full of self-beliefNEIL DRYSDALE September 01 2007
They are one of Scottish rugby's unfashionable sides and their coach, Roddy Moir, admits that it can be difficult to attract new faces to Braidholm, but GHA remain confident that they can make an impact upon their return to the top flight of the Scottish club game.

Admittedly, they will have to rely on stakhanovite effort from their mix of experienced former professionals, New Zealand recruits, and their own youngsters, if they are to achieve Moir's aim of a place in the top six of the newly titled Scottish Hydro Electric Premiership. There again, Currie and Ayr amply demonstrated last season that there is more to the club scene than the likes of Watsonians, Heriot's and Glasgow Hawks, and Moir is quiely confident that his personnel will rise to the challenge when they tackle fellow promotion winners, Stirling County this afternoon.

"We don't have as big a squad as some of the other clubs, but there is a lot of pride and determination around this place. It is up to us to make our own headlines, because this championship should be exciting and it should be entertaining," said Moir, a PE and guidance teacher at Kelvinside Academy, alongside Davie Wilson, the coach of Glasgow Hawks, which ensures there is plenty of joshing when the duo meet at the school gates on Mondays.

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"There is a huge block of matches between September 1 and December 15, so we want to hit the ground running against Stirling, because building up early momentum will be crucial to avoiding getting dragged into a dogfight later in the year.

"We've strengthened the areas where we thought we were a little weak last season, and we have signed three lads from New Zealand: Chris McKay, a centre from Otago, Dan Sutherland, a hooker and John Paine. We also have recruited Dameon Chenney from Cartha, so there should be plenty of beef in the pack, which will be vital in this division.

"Bringing in McKay means we can pair him with the likes of James Noonan and Alan Bulloch, which should be a pretty effective back line with these three in the middle of things.

"We know this is going to be a steep learning curve for everybody. We played Ayr in a pre-season match in August and they won 20-0, but that didn't bother me too much, because we were competitive and we have bolstered our resources since then. I'm not going to make any grand predictions, but I think we can give anybody a decent run for their money."

As for the main contenders for championship honours, Moir can't see beyond Hawks, his city rivals, who endured an uncharacteristically mediocre start to their title bid last autumn, but subsequently cranked up several gears en route to lifting the Scottish Cup at Murrayfield.

"They just kept improving as the season progressed and finished with a long series of victories, so it's fairly clear that if they can begin this time around as they finished in May that they will take some stopping," said Moir. "You only have to look at Hawks' record over the last five years to realise the high standard they have set themselves and I think they will be formidable again.

"Ayr mounted a sustained bid last year and only narrowly missed out to Currie, so they will be a force again. From what I've heard, both Watsonians and Heriot's are geared up to pose a serious threat, too, along with Currie."

Moir is "really pleased" that the fixture schedule isn't being interrupted between now and December. "There's nothing worse than having guys twiddling their thumbs on Saturdays because of autumn internationals," he said, "so this is the chance for the clubs to show that they have a terrific product to sell."

That opportunity will not be lost on Moir, who is abrim with purpose and ambition, and has no intention of letting history repeat itself by watching GHA being relegated, as happened two years ago. Yet, as he appreciates, today's home tussle with Stirling is exactly the kind of encounter which his men must win, otherwise they could face an arduous winter of fretting over their fate.

"We beat County once last season and they beat us once, so I don't believe there is an awful lot between the sides, but yes, you have to capitalise on home advantage, because we know what kind of atmosphere to expect at Bridgehaugh. I wouldn't describe this as a must-win game, before our boys have even been on the pitch, but it would be great if we put points on the board on the first day and that will be our aim."

GHA boast few star names and many Glaswegians seem unaware of their existence. Moir and his colleagues have to ignore that and concentrate on sending County home to think again. If they don't, with Watsonians, Heriot's and Hawick as their next three opponents, life could be a struggle.

This article was posted on 1-Sep-2007, 07:06 by Hugh Barrow.