ACADEMY prospect Harry Paterson was a constant threat from the back as Edinburgh Accies turned around their heavy defeat at Malleny Park seven days earlier with a rousing home win over Currie Chieftains, so he is selected in No 15 jersey ahead of Musselburgh’s Ruaridh Young and Aaron McColm of Selkirk.
James Ferguson played an important role as Musselburgh pushed league-leaders Hawick hard at Stoneyhill so gets the nod ahead of the consistently dangerous Mason Cullen of Jed-Forest and in-form Luca Bardelli of GHA the right wing, while Scott Bickerstaff‘s outstanding solo try for Marr sees him earn selection ahead of the prolific Craig Robertson of Heriot’s Blues, Lewis Wells of Edinburgh Accies and Sandy Watt of Musselburgh on the right wing.
Robbie Kent was on fire for Edinburgh Accies, scoring an early try and almost going the length for another to help set the tone against Chieftains, but he then picked up a shoulder injury injury before the break. At this point Max Wallace moved from 12 to 13 and carried on in the same vain, scoring a try and setting up the decisive score for Wells at the death, so he is selected at outside-centre.
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Andrew Mitchell made some huge tackles and scored an excellent try as Hawick battled past Musselburgh, so he is at inside-centre, selected ahead of Max MacFarlane, who played well in a losing cause for GHA against Glasgow Hawks.
Competition was intense for the stand-off spot, with Craig Jackson demonstrating his experience and class as Selkirk got the better of Jed at Riverside, while Jamie Loomes controlled things brilliantly and made amends for a missed sitter earlier in the match with an ice-cool touchline conversion which secured Accies’ win over Chieftains, but on this occasion the influence Colin Sturgeon as Marr blew Heriot’s away in the second half wins out. He is joined by Jack Hamilton of Selkirk, selected just ahead of Ben Afshar of Edinburgh Accies is the scrum-half.
In the pack, Iain Carmichael was excellent at loose-head (and later in the back-row) for Glasgow Hawks so wears the No 1 jersey, Jed’s all-action, goal-kicking hooker Finlay Scott wears No 2, and Struan Cessford‘s solidity and two tries for Heriot’s Blues gets him the No 3 spot.
Jamie Campbell was a stand-out around the park and in the touchline battle as Musselburgh came close to causing the biggest upset of the season against Hawick, and he is joined in the engine-room by the hard-work Struan Whittaker of Edinburgh Accies meaning there is no room on this occasion for Clark Skeldon of Jed, the irrepressible Stephen Leckey of Hawks, and Sean Johnstone of Heriot’s Blues.
Mike Vernel made a huge impact on the game and the scoreboard with his two tries and endless effort for Currie at Raeburn so edges out Michael Badenhorst of Musselburgh and Ben McNeil of Jed at blindside, Scott McClymont of Selkirk is named just ahead of Hawick’s man-of-the-match Calum Renwick at openside, and Ryan Sweeney‘s excellent performance for Hawks at No 8 means Ruairi Campbell of Edinburgh Accies, Fraser Grant of Marr, Paul Bogie of Musselburgh and Monro Job of Selkirk are overlooked this week.
15. Harry Paterson (Edinburgh Accies)
14. James Ferguson (Musselburgh)
13. Max Wallace (Edinburgh Accies)
12. Andrew Mitchell (Hawick)
11. Scott Bickerstaff (Marr)
10. Colin Sturgeon (Marr)
9. Jack Hamilton (Selkirk)
1. Iain Carmichael (Glasgow Hawks)
2. Finlay Scott (Jed-Forest)
3. Struan Cessford (Heriot’s Blues)
4. Jamie Campbell (Musselburgh)
5. Struan Whittaker (Edinburgh Accies)
6. Mike Vernel (Currie Chieftains)
7. Scott McClymont (Selkirk)
8. Ryan Sweeney (Glasgow Hawks)