Depleted Cambus in bother regarding no show

Cambuslang RFC are likely to be deducted points for failing to field a team in their last match.

Head coach Jamie Seery was faced with a dilemma on Friday night with only 14 players at his disposal ahead of their away fixture with Annan the following day.

A mixture of work and injuries ruled out Seery’s first-team starters while a chest infection has affected the breathing of a number of Cambus stars meaning the Coats Park side had to postpone the match.

It is understood the teams will have to replay the fixture at a later date but Cambuslang are likely to be hit with a points deduction which could see them plummet to the bottom of the BT West League Division 1.

Seery (pictured below) told the Reformer:“We only had 14 players available and some were working anyway so I knew about them. We had a few call-offs on Friday who were struggling to breath.

“We had a few injuries as well so it was a mix of all those things which meant we were not able to travel.

“As far as I know it gets replayed but we are still to be deducted points and that’s still to be confirmed.

“Going by what has happened to teams before, if we are deducted three points that puts us bottom of the league so this is really disappointing.

“I had hoped to have Alec Bean back but he had a visit with the surgeon who told him he could start contact this week but he couldn’t play on Saturday. I’m not sure if he will be ready for Saturday. He’s the captain so he’s so important and has been a big miss for us since the start of the season.”

The Cambus host Oban Lorne in their next game and Seery is confident they will be able to field a team.

However, the head coach admitted recruitment will be on his mind for the next few weeks to ensure they stave off fears of relegation and aim for a mid-table finish.

He added:“It is difficult because we do not have a large squad of players to pick from. Recruitment is a big issue and more players would obviously firstly cover things like this [postponed matches] but also give us competition for places.

“The under 18s are doing well so in a few years you could have 20 players there to potentially pick from. But we need to sort out recruitment to help with things right now, which is easier said than done.

“Going by their results it’s hard to know what to expect from Oban. They beat Irvine but have also lost a few games by a lot of points so it depends what team turns up. I’ve heard their forwards are good so I expect it to be physical.”