Hawick hoping to keep up unbeaten run in derbies in rugby’s Tennent’s Premiership

The table-topping Greens are at home to their seventh-placed Jedburgh opponents at Mansfield Park, with kick-off at 3pm.

The hosts, undefeated so far this season, go into that game with 38 points from nine matches, their visitors, having won three times and lost six, being 20 points worse off.

Hawick have played three Borders derbies so far this campaign, all Border League double-headers – drawing 20-20 at home to Selkirk in August and defeating them 17-8 away at the end of October and beating Jed-Forest 22-12 away at the start of September – so this weekend’s will be the last of the regular season.

Jed-Forest have only played one, their loss to the Greens at Riverside Park, leaving two to go – home and away to Selkirk on Saturday, November 26, and Friday, November 18, respectively.

Hawick won all four of their derbies last premiership season – 23-22 hosting Selkirk in September 2021 and 14-9 away to them at Philiphaugh in December and 24-7 at home to Jed in October and 34-10 away in January.

They also saw off Jed 53-12 at home in the Border League in February, as well as beating Kelso 18-14 in its final in April.

Jed drew 10-10 at Selkirk in November and lost 21-9 at home to the Souters six days later, as well as being beaten by Hawick home and away.

Both head coaches, Hawick’s Matty Douglas and Jed’s Andrew Brown, are looking forward to trying their luck against each other again and both are hopeful of coming out on top.

Douglas told us: “We’re looking forward to it, definitely.

“After having a week off, we’re keen to get back into it, and for us, it’s just about backing up performances now, taking one week at a time, and it’s a Border derby, isn’t it?

“We’re back at home as well. We’re still to be beaten at Mansfield for three seasons now and that’s another thing we want to keep going.

“It will be tough, though, as Jed are a really good side and they’ve got better as the weeks have gone on.

“We know our last performance, against Selkirk, maybe wasn’t the greatest, so I think we’ve got a little bit to prove this week to try and back up the performances we’ve put in prior to that.”

Brown, being Cumbrian, is a newcomer to Borders derbies but is relishing the prospect of his second at XVs, saying: “We’re looking forward to this game.

“We’ve made strides and we’re getting better and the lads are buying in and adapting to the way we want to play rugby.

“We’re competing week in and week out. We just need to put that 80 minutes together.

“We had a great first 40 minutes against Currie in our last game and really took the game to them and could have done without half-time coming as that break in play got them back into it.

“They’re a good outfit, though, and Hawick obviously will be too They’re extremely strong up front, which will be a challenge in itself, but if we can get the ball and play with a bit of width and a bit of tempo, like we know this Jed team can, then hopefully we’ll be able to do well.

“Derby days are what it’s all about. They’re the big days. It’s two towns descending on one rugby club so they’re always massive competitions. They’re about getting bragging rights until the next time and that’s what you want to do.”

Fifth-placed Selkirk are away to Glasgow Hawks, one league place and two points better off than the Souters, this Saturday, with kick-off at 2pm.