Greens bid to extend Highland’s misery on the road
HIGHLAND will be aiming to spike the Greens’ six game winning streak when the sides clash at Millbank tomorrow.
Caithness meanwhile will be hoping to continue their sequence while extending the city’s side winless run on their travels in the RBS Caledonia 1 League.
Greens coach Colin Sangster missed Saturday’s 30-20 win in Orkney as he was at a squad session with the Caley under-18s, which he has coached to four inter-district titles in recent years. Having been briefed on the Kirkwall match, he reflects that recent performances, while producing the goods, have been beset by some worrying fade-outs.
“We play some really good rugby for longish spells and then we seem to go to sleep and look pretty mediocre at times.
“We have also been scoring quite a few tries through individual skills rather than through things we’ve been working on in training.”
Sangster also bemoans a tendency of some players to allow opposition an advantage through tackling too high and his side’s expensive habit of conceding penalties at the breakdown.
“It’s frustrating these things continue to happen as if we can address them, we’ll be a match for any team in the league.”
Sangster does not read much into the track record of Highland thus far.
“They have won all their home games and lost all their away ones but games between the sides are always very tough and they won’t like the idea of losing up here.
“I’ve heard on the grapevine that they have had a meeting to address the problems they have had to get a strong side to travel and a full-strength Highland side are a handful.
“There’s a lot at stake for us and we want to keep our run going.”
Caithness have problems in the front row with prop John Miller still offshore; Lorne MacNicol being ruled out by a back injury he sustained versus Orkney; and Mark Nicolson very doubtful after damaging a shoulder in training.
Utility back Gordie MacLeod also faces a late fitness check on a back injury while centre Norman Foubister is offshore.
On the plus side, David McCarthy and James ‘Pop’ Sinclair should be back while student Liam Brims could return to the squad for the game which kicks off at 3pm.