The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Grammar grandstand finish aims at top three
● Ryan’s target in last seven games as Selkirk head north
Aberdeen Grammar number eight Greig Ryan believes a topthree finish in National 1 is still possible if his side can end the season with a flourish.
Grammar started 2019 in style with a 66-7 demolition of Kelso at Rubislaw last weekend and Ryan is eager to continue the winning habit when Selkirk travel north tomorrow.
Grammar are sixth in National 1 with seven games remaining and Ryan has not given up hope of catching the three teams immediately above them – Musselburgh, Selkirk and GHA.
He said: “Marr and JedForest are probably too far ahead of us but third place is still up for grabs and if we could finish third in the league it would be a great achievement.
“Selkirk are six points ahead of us and if we could win with maximum points it would take us to within a point of them and in a good place in the league. There are three teams above us on 52 points and Selkirk are one of them so it is all to play for in the last seven games.”
The 28-26 loss at Selkirk when the sides last met on
“It would be nice to make amends for narrow loss”
September 29 has not been forgotten in the Aberdeen camp and Ryan will be using the frustrating finish to the last encounter as motivation tomorrow.
He said: “Selkirk are a good, strong side. We were well on course for victory after 65 minutes before throwing the game away in the final quarter of an hour.. We undid all our earlier good work so it would be nice to make amends.”
The impressive rout of Kelso last weekend has given Grammar a spring in their step for their second home game of this year but Ryan insists the opposition were contributors to their own downfall in a one-sided and physical encounter.
He said: “It sounds like it was a great performance but Kelso turned up with 17 players and finished the game with 12.
“The first half was pretty brutal and they dropped like flies.
“We’re pleased to have blown away the cobwebs and got a good 80 minutes under our belts with a big win but we’re not getting carried away. It was nice to start the year with a win but we know we can play better and it’s important we try to build some momentum for the run-in.”