Highland could blow the National One title race wide open if they shock visiting leaders Kelso on Saturday.
Ahead of this final fixture for both teams, the Inverness side still have an outside chance of catching Gala to finish 2022/23 in fourth position – and that’s all head coach Davie Carson is focused on.
When they visited Kelso in October, they ran their hosts close, losing 24-21.
Kelso are 10 points ahead of Ayr, who have a game in hand and don’t play this weekend.
Defeat for the front-runners, who have won 19 of their 22 matches, would open the door for Ayr, who travel to Gala next weekend before finishing at Stewart’s Melville seven days later.
Kelso, therefore, will be heading north to get the win which would put them on the brink of a title win and promotion to the Premiership.
‘I want is to finish with a win’
Carson knows Ayr will watching closely, but his chief concern is rounding off an improved campaign with a spring in their step.
He said: “You couldn’t ask for a better way to end the season than at home to the league leaders – what a finale.
“We asked our players to get four wins from our last four games. We have won three so far and we want to make it four to round off the season.
“Either Kelso or Ayr will go up, but from our point of view, all I want is to finish with a win. I’m looking forward to it immensely.
“If that happens, only one team will have beaten us at home this season and that would be Melrose – that’s our aim, which will put us in good stead going into next season.
“Melrose are, in fact, the only team to beat us home and away and we want that to remain the case come Saturday tea-time.”
Fast play best way to tackle Kelso
Having lost in Kelso by just three points earlier in the campaign, Carson is urging his men to throw everything at the league’s top team for 80 minutes to give themselves a chance.
He said: “We got off to a really slow start and I think they led 21-3 at half-time and we came right back to lose by only three points.
“We turned the heat and the pace up in the second half, very similar to what we did against Dundee a couple of weeks ago.
“With another five minutes on the clock, we reckon we could have beaten Kelso that day, because their forwards were absolutely burst.
“The aim on Saturday will be to play as fast as we can. This is our last game, just empty the tank and see if they can go off with a win before they go and have a rest over the summer.”
Strong results keeping Carson happy
Whether Highland finish fourth or fifth, they have secured more victories this season and there are younger players making an impact, which is great for the future of the club.
He added: “We have got more wins this year compared to last and that shows progress.
“You look back at a couple of games and think: ‘if only’, but that’s sport – we’ve seen young boys come in this season and do a job and they will be eager to grab first-team jerseys next year.”
Highland, with hospitality packed for this rescheduled game, expect to be at full-strength for the weekend, with Craig Findlater, Rupeni Rokoduguni and Rory Mighton added to the pool.
Orkney must wait for final fixture
Orkney’s splendid six-game winning run in National Three was ended when they lost 50-5 at Hillhead Jordanhill last week, which saw their Glasgow opponents move into first place.
Gordonians, who are now second, are strong favourites to go on and win the title as they have three games in hand and are just one point off below the summit.
Orkney, whose sparkling form has helped them reach fifth place, could well drop one or two positions by the time they return to action against Gordonians on May 6.
📝MATCH REPORT | Hillhead Jordanhill v Orkney 8-4-23
On Saturday 8th April 2023 Orkney Rugby senior men’s team travelled to Glasgow for their penultimate Tennent’s National League Division Three fixture.
Opponents on the day being Hillhead Jordanhill…https://t.co/eFyB58fgBe pic.twitter.com/ZcnUwCjCv7
— Orkney RFC (@OrkneyRFC) April 10, 2023
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