​Early start as Earlston bid for Scottish rugby’s national bowl in Edinburgh

​They play Highlanders Lochaber at the capital’s Hive Stadium at 10am for 2025’s men’s national bowl to get proceedings under way, with six further finals to follow.

Earlston booked their place in this year’s final, their first in a history going back a century and a half, with a 30-22 last-four win at home to Clackmannanshire's Hillfoots at the end of March.

Arnold Clark West Region League Division 3 table-toppers Lochaber were also in semi-final action that same day, beating Aberdeenshire’s Banff 22-10 away to earn an outing to Edinburgh.

Earlston and Lochaber got to those semis by winning this year's east and west bowls respectively in mid-February, both away, the former beating Edinburgh Northern by 31-7 and the latter seeing off Dumfries and Galloway’s Moffat by 29-20.

Looking ahead to Saturday’s early start, Earlston head coach Cammy Hill told Borders Rugby TV: “It’s going to be hard to get good preparation done that early in the morning but I think there’ll be enough excitement for the boys to manage to get themselves up for it, even with that early kick-off.

“That’s a ridiculous time to be leaving and it’s the sort of thing that maybe needs looking at, but if we play as we have all season and play to our capabilities, we’ve got a more than really good chance of winning.

“It’s just about whether the boys turn up with the right attitude. If they get off the bus, we’ll be fine.”

A bit of consolation for the Borderers is that their 7am departure from Earlston for a 40-mile journey to Edinburgh is lie-in-friendly compared to their rivals’ setting-off time of 5.15am from Banavie, near Fort William, for a near-300-mile round trip.

Hill’s squad for the final, captained by Ali Cessford, will be loosehead prop Padraig Gillan, loosehead prop Sandy Fairbairn, tighthead prop Ollie Smith, locks Cessford and Ethan Deakin, blindside flanker Dylan Oliver, openside flanker Tom Cromarty, No 8 Nathan Chisholm, scrum-half James Fender, fly-half Dave Anderson, left-winger Thomas Richardson, inside-centre Morgan Oliver, outside-centre Callum McNeil, right-winger Nathaniel Armstrong and full-back Jai Fender, with Lynton Brinck, Dylan Riddell, Sam Craig, Arron Paterson, Gareth Walker, Kris Rowley and Craig Bruce as replacements.

They’ll be up against Ben and Ronnie Fulford, Findlay Ireland, Hamish Kennedy, Callum MacDonald, Josh and Rory MacKay, Douglas MacRae, Liam Ryan, Chris Simpson, Finlay Stewart, Rob Willens, Callum Boyd, Archie Campbell, Ryan Davies, Scottie Diack, Davy Duncan, Jack Hamilton, Stuart Hinchcliffe, Koni Johnson, captain Calum Sandison and Steven Traill.

Saturday’s other finals include one for 2025’s controversial incarnation of the Scottish cup, being contested by Arnold Clark National League Division 1’s Glasgow Hutchesons’ Aloysians and Glasgow Academicals at Murrayfield Stadium at 3.30pm.

This year’s competition has come in for criticism after attracting only seven entries, prompting calls for it to be scrapped, with the sole one from the Borders, Gala, pulling out ahead of a scheduled quarter-final away to Heriot’s last month.

All-day tickets cost £10 in advance and £15 on the day for adults aged up to 59. For details, go to scottishrugby.org/silver-saturday