Stones to grace rugby club’s big day out
breweries – a marked increase on last year.
Perthshire Brass will kick-off the musical entertainment from shortly after the festival opens at noon until approximately 3pm.
They will be followed at various intervals over the course of the day by wide-ranging Dundee talents Cover Daddy, Status Quo tribute act Accept No Substitute and rock ‘n’ roll headliners Slider – the latter of which takes to the stage from 8pm and will play until closing.
Food will be provided in the form of a barbecue, and there will also be a bouncy castle and other family-friendly activities for festival-goers to enjoy.
Club president Fraser Bissett, who thanked a whole host of local firms for sponsoring the ale casks, said the event was the perfect way to begin the club’s season.
He told the Blairie: “We’ve got a lot more ‘non-rugby’ things planned for this year because we want to encourage as many people – whether they like rugby or not – to come down to the club and see what we’re about. It’s free entry and it should be a great day.”
Players are warming up for the new campaign with a home friendly against Stobswell RFC on Saturday this week from 2pm.
This will be followed by a ‘day of action’, in association with the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Rugby Force project, on Saturday, August 13.
Blairgowrie’s first match of the BT Caledonia League Division 2 Midlands season is a home tie against Falkirk 2XV on Saturday, August 27.
Looking ahead to the campaign Fraser, who revealed the club is in the process of appointing a rugby development officer in a bid to grow the game in east Perthshire, continued: “This will be my 17th season of senior rugby in Blairgowrie and I don’t see any reason why we can’t be competing at the top end of the league.
“At times recently we’ve had 30-plus boys down to training recently – new players, young lads coming through and older players who’ve come back into things – which is the most I’ve seen in my time at the club.
“Training’s been great. We’ve had good coaching and have been working on moves, our fitness and concentrating on things like being more aggressive in the breakdown, so it all bodes well.”
Training takes place from 7pm sharp on Tuesdays and Thursdays at JJ Coupar Recreation Park and new players are welcome. Volunteers are also welcome to lend a hand on the ‘day of action’.