Scottish Rugby announced the fixtures for the mid-season Premier league split today.

Introduced because of a shared desire to improve the standard and intensity of Scotland’s club game, the mid-season split sees Scotland’s two Premier 1 and 2 divisions divided into three groups of eight (Premier A, B and C).

As well as the Premier 1 title, the top eight teams in Premier A will compete for the three British & Irish cup qualification places for the 2011/12 cross border competition, the middle eight (Premier B) will compete for the right to play in Premier 1 next season, with the top four finishers earning that right. The highest placed Premier 2 team will be crowned as Premier 2 champions.

Finally, the bottom eight (Premier C) will compete to avoid relegation, with the two bottom-placed teams dropping into Premier 3.

Colin Thomson, Scottish Rugby’s head of community rugby, said: “Scottish Rugby and Scotland’s Premier clubs shared the need to improve the standard and intensity of Scotland’s club game and to create a competition structure that would complement the successful introduction of the British & Irish Cup.

“The widespread opinion of players, coaches and officials is that the first half of the season has been a resounding success. Each of the first 11 matches are crucial to a team’s placement in the split which challenged the players week in week out and saw both Premier 1 and 2 go right to the wire as clubs vied for position.

“We now look forward to yet another step up in competitive intensity as the teams prepare to mount their challenge for championships, a chance to play in the British & Irish Cup, one of the four slots available to play in Premier 1 next season or indeed to avoid relegation.”

Head coach of Premier Cup champions Ayr, Kenny Murray, agreed: “The new league format has brought excitement and anticipation to Premier 1 with every game having significant importance for the teams. Ayr rugby club welcomes this and hopes that it will continue in the future.

“The seven games after the split will provide a cup final feel to every game and will no doubt make for some great contests.”

Saturday 6 November is a scheduled Cup weekend to allow clubs to plan ahead, which means that the league action will reconvene on Saturday 13 November.

SCOTTISH PREMIER POST SPLIT FIXTURES
The championship committee and the forums of the Premier 1 and 2 clubs acknowledged that the priority of the post-split draw was to ensure, where possible, that all teams play nine home games and nine away.

PREMIER A (TOP EIGHT), ROUND 1
Ayr v Dundee
Glasgow Hawks v Boroughmuir
Melrose v Heriot’s
Currie v Hawick

PREMIER A (TOP EIGHT), ROUND 2
Ayr v Glasgow Hawks
Currie v Melrose
Dundee v Boroughmuir
Heriot’s v Hawick

PREMIER A (TOP EIGHT), ROUND 3
Melrose v Ayr
Glasgow Hawks v Currie
Boroughmuir v Heriot’s
Dundee v Hawick

PREMIER A (TOP EIGHT), ROUND 4
Ayr v Currie
Glasgow Hawks v Melrose
Heriot’s v Dundee
Hawick v Boroughmuir

PREMIER A (TOP EIGHT), ROUND 5
Ayr v Boroughmuir
Dundee v Glasgow Hawks
Currie v Heriot’s
Melrose v Hawick

PREMIER A (TOP EIGHT), ROUND 6
Hawick v Glasgow Ayr *
Heriot’s v Hawks *
Boroughmuir v Melrose
Currie v Dundee *

PREMIER A (TOP EIGHT), ROUND 7
Heriot’s v Ayr
Melrose v Dundee *
Boroughmuir v Currie
Glasgow Hawks v Hawick

This article was posted on 3-Nov-2010, 10:49 by Hugh Barrow.