It’s all on the line as Super Saturday sets stage for Grand Championship push
HK Scottish face must-win clash with Valley to keep title hopes alive and retain Broony Quaich
It will be make or break for Bloomberg Hong Kong Scottish when they face Societe Generale Valley in this weekend’s KELY Support Group Super Saturday matches at Hong Kong Football Club.
Saturday marks the finale of this year’s “super” weekends in the HKRFU Premiership, and Scottish have it all to play for with vital league points and the Broony Quaich on the line.
Even though this won’t be a home game for Quaich holders Scottish, under league rules the coveted silverware is up for grabs at every Super Saturday meeting during the season. But more importantly, the boys from The Rock know that a slip-up against Valley could spell the end of their Premiership title ambitions.
With the added incentive of us having to put up the Quaich, I’m sure Saturday will be a tasty encounter
“With HKCC getting a bonus point [last weekend] they are now in pole position at the top, but for us it was simply about winning and securing our play-off place,” Scottish general manager Dave Whiteford said of his side’s 26-10 victory over Borrelli Walsh USRC Tigers.
He added that a win against Valley on Saturday “is vital in securing our next objective of sealing a home semi-final” in the Grand Championship.
“With the added incentive of us having to put up the Quaich, I’m sure Saturday will be a tasty encounter. It will be all about us performing and doing what we practice on the training ground. If we can do that everything will take care of itself,” said Whiteford.
Valley, who are nine points adrift of league leaders HKCC and seven points behind Scottish, will be aiming to cut the deficit fueled by the knowledge that the following week they will lose several key players to the national sevens squad.
“We still need some improvement to be done in terms of our attack but have had great commitment from the boys since the new year,” said head coach Jack Isaac.
