Rugby: Lasswade coach plotting Boroughmuir cup downfall

Lasswade coach Dave Cockburn is desperate to see his men continue their recovery from a mid-season dip in form when they welcome his former club Boroughmuir to Hawthornden on RBS Regional Cup duty tomorrow (kick-off 2pm).

Cockburn, who played more than 500 times for Boroughmuir between 1971 and 1994, watched his men suffer from a combination of injuries and loss of confidence which saw them sustain four successive Premier 3 defeats before stopping the rot with an impressive 31-17 victory over GHA last Saturday.

“It’s had a lot to do with mental attitude,” he admitted. “There has been a lack of belief which is something I just can’t fathom.”

Although he is keen to play down the expectations for his team, last season’s winners of the Shield competition, Cockburn believes his men can match a ’Muir side that has lost seven of their last eight competitive matches. “Boroughmuir should always beat a Premier 3 side,” he added. “They have guys like Sean Crombie who is a good rugby player. He has been a pro and I’m sure he’ll get them going.

“I’m sure they will want to play it wide. We can also play the game wide if we want, but we showed on Saturday that we can also play it tight.”

With league reconstruction taking place at the end of the season, there is little at stake for Lasswade week to week. And that, Cockburn believes, heightens the incentive to perform well tomorrow.

“When you are in Prem 3, you can’t go up and you can’t go down. But in a cup tie it’s different. This is a game we are ready for. We want to get stuck into a Premier 1 side.”

Having lost their opening tie to Currie, the visitors go into the match knowing that anything less than a win will end their interest in the competition.

Even a victory may be insufficient, as it would require a win for Lasswade over Currie in the final pool match on January 7.