MURRAYFIELD WANDERERS president Paton Wallace insists that the mood in his club remains upbeat, despite a Scottish Hydro Electric Premiership Division Three campaign that has seen them concede almost 1200 points in their 21 matches to date.
The content of an end-of-season report from first-team skipper Rick Howes has given Wallace confidence that the club has a promising future, and the arrival of Edinburgh rugby back rower Simon Cross as coach for next season is adding to the optimis
m.
"There is no getting away from the fact that to go into our last game against Ardrossan Accies without a league point is very disappointing", he said. "But the players all believe that they have improved more than 100 per cent from where they were in September." Much of the credit for that upturn in morale and skill development has been attributed to Matt Mustchin, another Edinburgh pro, who has been in charge of coaching this season.
He was appointed only five weeks before the season started, meaning there was no time to prepare the side properly for the league campaign. That, said Wallace, made life particularly difficult for everyone involved.
"Matt has done a great job given the time he had available. The players all think it is a better team and that shows in the captain's report. Everyone is saying that the atmosphere at the club is back to what it was five or six years ago.
"Next season will be Matt's last with Edinburgh and there are things he wants to do. He will be spending time with his family and studying for life after rugby. We are fortunate that Simon has agreed to coach the side for the next two years
"I have spoken to all of the players and they have all said they will sign up again. Simon will be starting the pre-season training in May. To start with it will be at Holyrood Park or on the beach rather than the rugby field.
"Getting going so early means we won't be in the position we were in this season when it was only a few weeks before the start that we got the coaching set-up in place and began training."
Wallace is confident that, with Cross at the helm, the club will not be allowed to slip further down the leagues. Murrayfield will be advertising for a backs coach to assist Cross and director of rugby Keith Craig. The initial target will be to compete at the top of the National League Division One, although Wallace is conscious of the problems associated with bouncing back too soon.
"If we come back up we must have a squad capable of keeping us there," he added.
There are other grounds for optimism at Murrayfield. The women's team is on track for a league and cup double, the girls under-18 side won the Scottish Cup and their under-15s were beaten in their final.
In addition, teenage full back Seamus McKenzie, who has been a regular in the full side, has earned international honours with the Scotland under 18s. He is one of a clutch of youngsters who have been exposed to top-team action and Wallace admits that it has been a steep learning curve for them.
"It's extremely difficult for young players because Division Three is a tough league", he said. "They are up against guys who are very experienced. Our players are very talented but not particularly streetwise." Away from the playing front, the club will benefit from modern facilities once upcoming work related to the flood prevention scheme and tram development is completed. Initially that will mean moving to temporary accommodation, although club officials believe the disruption will be worthwhile.
"The work is scheduled to start on June 2", explained Wallace. "We are hoping that all the pitches will be available by the end of October. There will be three good pitches and one synthetic surface which is a fourth generation (G4) pitch and has been approved by the IRB for playing on. We will also have better lighting."
Those developments are adding Wallace's confidence that better times are around the corner.
"As president, I am very pleased with the mood at the club", added Wallace. "Everyone involved has kept their heads up despite the fact we haven't won a league point.
"Nobody likes getting hammered all the time. But the players have been turning up two or three nights a week for training and giving everything they've got for 80 minutes. You can't ask for any more than that."
The full article contains 771 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
