East Kilbride boss hopes for strong season as he eyes West League 1 title charge

Head coach Craig Brown reckons East Kilbride Rugby Club are ‘capable of doing a lot’ this season, as his side prepare to return to competitive action this weekend.

EK came agonisingly close to lifting silverware last season when they were pipped to the National Shield by Stewartry at Murrayfield in May, losing 15-22.

But their league form left a lot to be desired as they finished seventh in West Region One.

Brown has a full year under his belt at Torrance House now and believes his players are more used to his style of play, so he hopes that will pay off with a successful campaign.

EK get league business underway on Saturday at home to last season’s third-place side Cumnock and asked about his hopes for the campaign, Brown said: “I think we have the personnel to do a lot this season.

“We’ve had a year now of my style of coaching and the type of rugby we want to play.

“It is a bit more familiar to the players now and you can see that starting to come into our games. The fluidity of our phases has really built, so there’s no reason we can’t relax more this season and play some fun rugby.

“Last year, there was so much change and at times it was a bit overwhelming for the players.

“It’s like an orchestra. Everybody can be playing their instruments perfectly but just one person playing off key can make the whole thing sound funny.

“That is kind of what was happening for us.

“We were getting a certain style, skill level and intensity and there were just some players who needed a little bit more time to get to grips with it.

"On game days, it still affected the overall performance of the team but I hope that will be a bit better this season, and we get to see some good rugby at EK.

“It is going to be a hard first game with