Earlston remain top of table despite fixture call-off but games go ahead for Hawick Linden and Duns
Earlston will retain possession of pole position in Arnold Clark East Region League Division 2 until mid-November at the earliest despite not having set foot on a rugby pitch in earnest since the start of the month.
Their scheduled match away to Leith on Saturday was called off due to their hosts’ pitch being waterlogged but, with only one of three games on the division’s fixture card for that afternoon, a 108-5 thumping for Edinburgh’s Forrester away to Hawick Linden, going ahead, the top of the table remains unchanged.
Head coach Cammy Hill’s Earlston stay top, on a 100% return of 20 points from four fixtures, the most recent of them an 80-7 win away to Forrester on Saturday, October 3, and opposite number Neil Douglas’s Hawick Harlequins are still second, on 19 from five.
Keith Hedley’s Linden are also static in the standings despite having racked up back-to-back wins, staying put in fourth place, now on 11 points from four fixtures, five behind third-placed Edinburgh Northern, on 16 from four.
Their try-scorers at home to basement side Forrester at Volunteer Park were fly-half Riley Muir, outside-centre and captain Lewis Ferguson and scrum-half Euan Wood with hat-tricks and lock Harley Byson and replacement Ryan Ali at the double, plus full-back Jordan Garcia, left-winger Thomas Anderson and substitute James Rowley.
Muir also kicked 13 conversions, taking his points tally for the day to 41, and Ferguson added another.
Only one game went ahead a division down too and that was a 58-0 defeat for Duns on the road in Edinburgh against Royal High.
That fifth bonus-point win out of five for the hosts sees them retain top spot, now on 25 points from that handful of fixtures, with head coach Richard Hume’s Dingers staying second, on 20 from six.
Earlston are at home to Forrester in round two of this season’s national shield this coming Saturday and ’Quins are away to Dunbar in the same competition, both 1.30pm kick-offs.
Duns are also in action this Saturday, at home to Edinburgh’s fourth-placed Trinity Academicals for a league fixture, and that’s a 2pm kick-off at Castle Park.
Linden don’t play again until Saturday, November 14, away to Leith on league business at 2pm.
That same time slot sees ’Quins hosting a derby against Earlston and Duns at home to Edinburgh’s sixth-placed Caledonian Thebans.