Kirkcaldy get ready for Borderers battle

Connor Wood should return for Kirkcaldy on Saturday. (Photo by Michael Booth) | Copyright © 2019 Michael Booth, all rights reserved

Kirkcaldy will find it hard to break out of the disastrous run of results in the month of February which has seen them topple down the National 2 table.

While they beat Peebles, Saturday’s visitors to Beveridge Park, when they met at the Gytes at the start of November, there was little between the teams in a 31- 29 win for the Blues. Kick-off is 3pm.

Over the months the Kirkcaldy line-up has gradually been weakened with the loss through serious injury of front line and heavy scoring flankers in Rhys Bonner and Dayle Turner as well as a number of other injury victims such as lock Connor Wood who missed the Glasgow Accies game through the concussion protocol.

In that game too further injuries were sustained by Scott Barclay and Gavin McKenzie further weakening the side. Generally the sharpness of pre-Christmas games has slipped away, especially with slow delivery from rucks and mauls which in their turn lead to inaccuracies in the backs with too much wild and uncontrolled passing.

Peebles come to Kirkcaldy in a rich vein of form with wins in all of their last eight games, including a home victory over league leaders Stewart’s Melville, who easily accounted for the Blues at Beveridge Park in December.

Last Saturday Peebles beat Newton Stewart 40-7. Blues’ supporters will need no reminding that the Galloway side had a comfortable win at Beveridge Park two weeks earlier.

Kirkcaldy have had the upper hand over Peebles in recent years, reversing a long trend of Peebles domination in the fixture for some years before that.

If the Blues are to maintain their winning record they will have to raise their recent level of performance during the month of February.

Head coach Quintan Sanft with all his injury problems will have quite a few selection worries as so many players are sidelined. Danny Jennings should be available to take his place in the stating line-up as will Connor Wood.