Craig Borthwick has seen enough from the first XV squad in pre-season to believe that they can be challenging once again for a top four place in the newly-named Tennent’s Premiership in 2018/19.

Last term the team finished fourth in the regular season table before being beaten by eventual winners Melrose in the semi-finals of the play-offs.

They also made the last four of the Scottish Cup before losing out to the same team, again who went on to win the event.

The challenge for second-row Craig and co is to build on those two finishes - and the 31-year-old skipper is feeling good ahead of the league opener with Stirling County this Saturday (Myreside, 3pm).

“After every season there is always a bit of change and obviously a few of our players have moved on, but the core of the squad has remained the same while we have brought in quality players who have played at a high level like Lee Millar and Josh Rowland.

“They will bring good leadership to an exciting backline along with Rory Hutton while it has been great to see young second-row Jamie Hodgson getting game time recently with Edinburgh and not looking out of place.

“For me, having Rory and Jamie as my vice-captains will help a lot. Until the season starts it is hard to tell where every team is at, but from our point of view pre-season has gone well and [head coach] Steve Lawrie has got his point across well.”

Another thing that has pleased Craig, who is now in his third season at the club, has been the way the young players joining the first XV squad have adapted.

“The young guys are willing to learn and in really good condition so it will be great to have their energy about the squad in the coming months,” he concluded.

By Gary Heatly