Feb 12, 2012             Wales 27 – 13 Scotland      

 Feb 11, 2012             Italy 15 – 19 England          

 Feb 5, 2012               Ireland 21 – 23 Wales         

 Feb 4, 2012               France 30 – 12 Italy & Scotland 6 – 13 England    

Favourites

In my opinion Wales are the favourites. My reasons why Wales are the favourites is quite simple. Firstly their determination to win is very strong. The Irish found this out by losing the game in the last minutes. Secondly the Welsh are very good at scoring points. What I mean by this is that the Welsh are very clinical and patient when building for a score. And finally the Welsh are a very physical team. They coped with both Irish and Scottish packs in the loose and set piece. While the backline looked down upon their opposition with the average height being six foot two inches. However this team will be pushed to their limits by French on the 17^th of March.

Wooden spoon candidates

Unfortunately Scotland and Italy will probably be fighting for it however if Ireland do not win their fixture against France it could be a three horse race. Which will increase a few nations blood pressures and club house tills.

Scotland

Where has it all gone wrong for Scotland so far?

In my opinion the scots are getting better with each week. I think credit is due, the Scottish pack is looking stronger than ever and there seems to be a bit of confidence coming back into the side from a poor world cup campaign. Andy Robinson has hit the nail on the head with new faces entering the side. I think the world of rugby took notice that we have the talent coming through. However it is still the same old story holding the side back with silly mistakes and lack of common sense. But there is hope! New players like Denton and Laidlaw have injected confidence and spark into the team. I still have my fingers crossed that the coaches will say ‘the shackles are off’ meaning let’s play rugby! Not aerial ping pong but ball in hand old fashioned running rugby. Similar to what is going on every Sunday at Minis training.

Please leave a comment with your thoughts and feelings. 

Fingers crossed!

Last Sunday Hillfoots Minis were in action and welcomed eight new playing members.  The sun was shining, it was not too cold and the ground was soft! But unfortunately some areas of the pitch were unplayable due people not picking up after their dog has fouled. 

This is a criminal offence and anyone caught will be fined on the spot by Council officials.  Hillfoots RFC has alerted the Council to this occurring problem and in response the Clackmannanshire Council will be increasing their patrols of the area.  Hillfoots RFC will be working with the Council to catch these offenders.  So please pick up your responsibility and bin it in the various dog bins dotted around the park.

Hillfoots RFC would also ask all dog owners to keep their pets off the pitches and surrounding areas.  This will hopefully decrease dog fouling on the pitches which will be much appreciated from all those who play sport in the park.  Tillicoultry is a great place with lots of dog walking trails and open fields.  Please make an effort so your children can have a safe environment to play in. 

 JP Ward

The ‘Foots squad was almost at full strength with only Keith Slade unable to make the trip due to a prior family engagement. Gavin Paterson returns to the side after work commitments  have seen the powerful winger miss most of the season. Calum McGee also returns after injury, with Andrew Hamilton moving to full back. The pack shows two changes. Gregor McIntosh returning at hooker in place of Keith Slade and Nik Binning retains his place at loosehead. 

The weather the following morning dampened the mood slightly with gale force winds, snow, rain and hail stones battering the northern coast.  Hillfoots kicked off into the wind and the heavy pitch showed from the start, this was clearly going to be a game for the forwards. Both teams started well and let little through the defences.  An infringement at a ruck gave Caithness a chance at goal which they gladly converted taking a 3-0 lead early on.  Hillfoots started gaining momentum from this point and began a relentless attack on the home-sides line.  Good forwards play saw the ball get picked and driven to within 5 metres of the line.  A quick shout from unmarked winger Gavin Paterson alerted Gregor Manson to pass to him on the blind side and score in the corner.  Unfortunately Manson failed with the conversion, which was acceptable in the conditions. Both defences proved impenetrable for the rest of the first half and it played out 5-3 in favour of the visiting side.

Half Time: Hillfoots 5 – 3 Caithness

 After stern words to pick up the spirit and fire up the boys, Hillfoots needed to dig deep for the rest of the game.  The second period began much like how the first ended with both defences solid.  A few good lines from the backs especially Andrew Hamilton and Calum McGee, working hard to break the line, saw Foots gain good yards up the pitch.  After more rumbling from the forwards towards the line, a pick and go saw Sandy Penman crash over for ‘Foots second try of the day.  This seemed to lift the squad and they were now running hard yards against a tiring Caithness side.  More backs moves broke the line and a couple of passes wide got ‘Foots in the red zone again.  Play switched back across the pitch and was once again being driven forward by the pack.  Another pick and go round the fringe this time by Chris Beetham, saw him dive for the line, only to be tackled inches short.  He managed to recover the ball and get it back to Penman, who crashed over the line for his, 2^nd of the day and 11^th of the season.  Andrew Hamilton stepped up and slotted the kick for the extras.  A couple of plays later, the ref blew for full-time.  A huge victory for Hillfoots on their travels and a good step towards catching league leaders, Aberdeenshire.

Full Time: Hillfoots 17 – 3 Caithness

Hillfoots travel north again this coming weekend, to face Aberdeen University.  A bus will be travelling from the club and support is more than welcome.

JP Ward 

Training is on and will start at 10am and finish at 1145am. It is a bit fogy out today so please be careful on your journey to training. 

Thanks 

JP Ward

A great coach & a big friend of Hillfoots RFC

Craig Bolan is moving on from his position as Rugby Development Officer for Clackmannanshire Council after 2 years in the post.  Craig spent his time split between supporting both Hillfoots RFC and Alloa RFC, as well as developing rugby in the primary schools of the County.  He also ran a number of Easter & summer camps for local children. 

JP sends his thanks to Steve Newton & Rob Moffat of Dollar Academy for inviting him to join them for the session. 

This weekend training is back to the usual times (10am till 12 noon) for P1 to S2 age groups and it will be at Hillfoots RFC . The long range weather forecast is looking good for this weekend but the temperature will be below 5 degrees centigrade. I will be down at the club early on Sunday morning at 8am to inspect the pitches and I will post the outcome here on the website at 8:30am.

I am looking forward to speaking to you all at the weekend.

King regards

JP Ward  

Finlay Johnston – Scotland mascot 4 February 2012

Finlay had a great day out last Saturday at Murrayfield as a mascot for Scottish Rugby.  He was given a complete set of replica kit and met with all the players & SRU staff.  Here he is on the pitch before the game sitting in front of Graeme Morrison.  Finlay said it was very cold sanding still for so long in the driving wind!

A very excited Dad with an extra special reason to be excited!

Here you can see sometime Cast Tups No.8 Iain Johnston also enjoying his day at Murrayfield.  His wife Bernadette can also be seen in the picture.  Proud parents!

Finlay passes on to Princess Anne his best wishes to the Queen on her Diamond Jubilee