High after revenge at Selkirk as clubs return from winter break

The festive gap in Scottish club rugby turned out to be pretty much last the whole of December, but finally there’s the opportunity to begin New Year with a clean slate as the leagues restart.

After two weeks frozen out in addition to the two off for the Christmas period, the rescheduling means that there’s now a seven-week run of fixtures for some, taking in the first few weeks of the Six Nations as well as all of January.

Dundee HSFP remain in what seems a lowly seventh place in National League one, but just six points cover five teams to third-placed Selkirk, who host High at Philiphaugh tomorrow.

High’s loss to Aberdeen at Rubislaw in the final match before the freeze meant it was Grammar that went fourth in the division instead, but it shows that there’s not a great deal between any of the sides below top two Edinburgh Accies and Jed-forest, who have opened up a sizeable gap themselves and the rest of the league.

Selkirk’s narrow comeback win at Mayfield was maybe the chief disappointment of the first half of High’s season, and they’ll be gunning for revenge.

The disadvantage is that High haven’t played since that Rubislaw game, while Selkirk had a full run out against runaway Premiership leaders Melrose the weekend before Christmas in the Border League, although they lost 49-0.

The exception is High No 8 Ali Mackie who played for the Co-optimists this week in their New Year game at Heriot’s.

National league Two leaders Kirkcaldy have an extra week’s break courtesy of Aberdeenshire’s withdrawal from the division, but the Blues will still be on top on Saturday night courtesy of their six-point lead over Dumfries, who face third-placed Lasswade at home.

Meanwhile Howe of Fife are home to Hamilton, who came down with them from National One last year, and narrowly won the first meeting of the clubs 20-12 back in September.

Howe are reasonably comfortably placed on 19 points and seven away from the remaining relegation place in the division, occupied by Whitecraigs.

But the Newton Mearns side are the only team they’ve beaten since September, and the club could do with a moraleboosting win on their home turf having had the last two fixtures called off for a frozen pitch.

Perthshire’s momentum built on three wins out of four in October has stalled due to inaction and a hammering in Inverness against Highland, but they’re still outside the relegation slots in National Three.

Coming up are tough fixtures against sides at the top of the division before they meet Dalziel at the end of this month, but to start with `Shire will be looking for something from the trip to Ardrossan Accies at Ayrshire.

There’s just two fixtures to open Caledonia Division One for 2018, and they feature the top two sides at home.

Caithness lead by just one from Strathmore, but aren’t likely to be caught this weekend as they host bottom side Banff.

Strathmore face Glenrothes, with a bonus point probably needed to keep pace with Caithness.

In Division Two Midlands the crunch meeting of Hillfoots and Blairgowrie has been brought forward from January 20, at `Foots request, and they have the chance to try and end Blair’s unbeaten record and draw level with them at the top.

The weekend’s domestic rugby fixtures will be published in tomorrow’s thesport supplement, free with The Courier