Captain's Views
It's a great pleasure to have been granted the honour for the 3rd season as the Captain of Aberdeen Grammar Rugby, the North's premier team in every sense. My enthusiasm for rugby and in particulr the fortunes of Aberdeen Grammar Rugby have not diminished with time and I am even more determined than ever to lead our Club back to Premier 1.
Last season was another one of those 'nearly' seasons. We lost out by the smallest of margins far too often, something which must be addressed this year by concentrating for the full 80 minutes. We were quite badly hit at times last seaon by injury to key players and it is hoped we have a bit more luck in this area in the season ahead. It certainly was a busy season for Julie and her team of physios who ensure the players are maintained in the best possible condition.
Our star centre pairing of 2008-2009 Euan Campbell (The Brick) and Ash McCulloch has been broken up this season - Ash has headed south to Edinburgh and Euan a bit further south to New Zealand. It will be a tough partnership to follow but I am confident that whoever fills the shirts at 12 and 13 will give 100% as was always the case with Ash and Euan. I wish them both all the best in their future rugby careers.
We have few new recruits to the playing squad as well as some changes to the coaching team. Alex and Boris coached the 1st XV to produce some fine performances at the tail end of last season and it's great news to have them continue in the coming campaign. We must carry our best form into every game if we are to achieve our goal to bring Premier 1 rugby back to Rubislaw in 2010-2011.
Mike Avis is to coach our 2nd XV and regular outings for a 3rd team are planned. This strength in depth is essential to ensure success. No less important is the vast number of Juniors and their coaches who train and play each week at Rubislaw. The game is growing in a very positive way in Aberdeen thanks to investment from the SRU, Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeen Grammar, Aberdeen Wanderers and also many local businesses who support Aberdeen Youth Rugby Association. This augurs well for Aberdeen Grammar, North and Scottish rugby in years to come.
This year we have the added bonus of state of the art changing rooms and thanks to extensive fund-raising an effective lighting system that will allow us to carry out proper preparation, which should reflect on enhanced Saturday performances. With full commitment from all players, coaches, physios, ground staff, the back room boys and girls who do so much unseen work behind the scenes and of course supporters and sponsors, I hope to be celebrating our return to Premier 1 in April 2010. Billy will be leading our team from the front on Saturday afternoons and all that remains for me to do is thank everyone who is involved in Aberdeen Grammar Rugby Club.
I look forward to the season with great enthusiasm and confidence and hope to see many of you at Rubislaw and if possible at away games.
Colin Philips (Club Captain)
