DAVID ADAMSON has resigned as head coach of Stirling County, stating that he was unable to balance the demands of that role with his day job as head of men’s rugby at the University of Edinburgh.
“It’s not been an easy decision, but I have simply found it too difficult managing my two roles with Stirling and the university. I can’t give the necessary time to Stirling that the club require to continue to be successful,” explained Adamson.
“It is a bit of a wrench as I’m from Stirling, played there and have a great relationship with John Wright, the president; but the University have been promoted to BUCS North A, which means a step up in all aspects of what we’ll need to do to be successful – plus our closest away fixture will be Newcastle University. The University stuff is now essentially six days a week.”
Stirling endured a frustrating 2016-17 league season. They finished eighth in the BT Premiership, avoiding the relegation play-off on points difference. While they remained competitive throughout, they struggled to build any sort of consistency, managing back-to-back victories only once during the campaign.
The Bridgehaugh outfit’s cause was not helped by the unavailability of several key players for significant chunks of the season. Club captain Callum Hunter-Hill was farmed out by the SRU to London Scottish on loan in mid-November and did not play for the club again in the campaign; while 19-year-old full-back Bruce Sorbie was sent to South Africa in January on a five-month scholarship.
Alongside Hunter-Hill and Sorbie, the club is currently home to some of the most exciting prospects in the Scottish game, including props Adam Nicol and Fergus Bradbury, centre Craig Pringle and homegrown winger Logan Trotter – all of whom had limited roles in the league run-in because they were involved in the Scotland Under-20 team’s Six Nations campaign.
Stirling did manage to reach the semi-final of the BT Cup before losing 48-18 to eventual winners Melrose at The Greenyards.
“Stirling would like to record their thanks to David Adamson for his contribution to the playing arm of the Club, his many hours of planning, analysis and execution has made a huge impact on our current structures,” said club president John Wright.
“The second half of our season was challenging for David with so many guys withdrawn from our squad for positive reasons, which is testament to his recruiting ability. We wish David further success with his Edinburgh University day job. A popular figure he will always be welcome at Bridgehaugh.”
“Going forward, we will start the recruitment process to replace David. The position, although challenging, will present a fantastic opportunity to fulfil the obvious promise currently in the senior squad. The club will continue to move forward through our continued investment in our Academy, youth teams and the explosion of girls’ rugby at Bridgehaugh.”