Rugby Roundup

🏉 Welcome to Your Weekly Rugby Round-Up! 🏉

Whether you were pitchside cheering in the rain or catching scores from the sidelines of life, this is your one-stop scroll for everything Penicuik Rugby.

From hard-fought tackles to rising stars, we’re diving into last week’s action and gearing up for the weekend ahead across all our sections.

It’s more than just match results—it’s the heartbeat of our club, our players, and our community.

So grab a cuppa, settle in, and let’s celebrate the grit, glory, and game we all love

Important Parking Notice – Montgomery Park Clubhouse

Following complaints received by Midlothian Council, we have been formally asked to remind all members of a critical parking rule:

Parking outside the clubhouse is strictly prohibited unless you are actively delivering heavy equipment to the club. This restriction applies to all vehicles at all times.

The turning area directly in front of the clubhouse is designated exclusively for emergency vehicles. It must remain clear and accessible.

The bollard at the entrance should always be upright and locked. If you find it lowered, this does not indicate that parking is permitted—please do not use the space.

We appreciate your cooperation in keeping Montgomery Park safe, compliant, and accessible for emergency services.

Sponsorship

On Saturday we welcome several of our sponsors to the clubhouse as a thank you for their support this season.  It was great to hear from 1xv coaches Kris and Rob about the teams development throughout pre-season.

We hope everyone enjoyed the hospitality and we look forward to welcoming our sponsors back later in the season

Club Shop

Our club shop has been given a summer make over with a range of new kit and accessories.  We now have additional range of items for our Panthers, Women’s side and the club as a whole.

Click here to view the full range – XXV Club Shop

Club Lounge

Thanks to all our members who utilised the club space over the weekend.

It’s great to see the venue fully used in quieter times.  We hope Layla enjoyed her birthday disco on Friday and hope Louie enjoyed his magic party on Sunday.

As part of your membership you are able to book the club lounge where available, just speak to a member of the management for availability

This Week

This week our Hunters were making fantastic strides on the training pitch! With energy, enthusiasm, and plenty of muddy smiles, their ongoing training sessions are helping build not just rugby skills, but confidence, teamwork, and resilience.

It’s inspiring to see their development in action—from mastering the basics to showing real game awareness. Huge thanks to our coaches and volunteers who make it all possible. The future of rugby is looking bright

Check the video below to see the training our P6 side undertook this week

This Weekend

As its the September weekend, both are micro’s and mini’s have the weekend off.

Coming Up…

We welcome you to join us Sunday 21st for our annual Greenstone Energy Hunters Festival of Rugby.

More details coming out later in the week… but look out your deck chairs!!

Boots on, Game On! 🏉🥾 On Saturday, 27th September, our fearless Hunters are swapping rugby boots for hiking boots as they take on the stunning Pentland Hills in a challenge that’s as inspiring as it is scenic.

We’re rallying support to raise funds for our youth section—every penny goes toward new equipment designed to sharpen their rugby skills and fuel their passion for the game.

Our youngest adventurers (P1–P3) will conquer the summit of Turnhouse and return back to the Flotterstone, while our older trailblazers (P4–P7) will tackle a 6-mile trek from Flotterstone, up Turnhouse, across to Carnethy, down the saddle, and all the way back to the rugby club.

If you’ve got a few coins hiding in the sofa—or just want to back our brilliant kids—please reach out to any of our Hunters Coaches for a sponsorship form.

Every bit of support helps them go further, both on the hills and on the pitch!

Last Weekend

@Dalkeith RFC Evolution Series

U12s Match Report – Sunday Rugby with a Twist 🏉

This morning, our U12s joined forces with Dalkeith and Murrayfield Wanderers, and what a shift they put in! We shook things up a bit—ditching the usual 8v8 format for 10v10 with rolling subs, which gave everyone plenty of game time and kept the energy high.

Our first match was against a combined squad from Melrose, Leith, North Berwick, and Peebles. Despite being thrown together at short notice, the girls gelled quickly and delivered a cracking performance. Defensively, they showed great line speed, made some brilliant tackles, and were relentless at the rucks. In attack, they supported each other well and offloaded with real intent. Tries came thick and fast—though I suspect there may have been a bit of cash bribery involved to sweeten the scoreboard!

Next up was a tough test against Stewart Melville/Dunbar. This one pushed the girls harder, especially after a few “creative” rule changes around the ruck area. But instead of backing down, they turned up the physicality, delivering some bone-rattling tackles to let off steam—and sealed the win in style.

Our final game was against Currie/Gala, and the girls raised their defensive game yet again. With rucking still off the table, they applied pressure straight from the restarts, forcing turnovers through loose balls and knock-ons. The tackling remained fierce (though my own child may have been a bit too enthusiastic—pinged for lifting a player off her feet!). In attack, the offloads were slick, and we saw some brilliant solo runs from across the squad. I’m fairly certain the bribery fund was still active…

Three games, three wins, and a whole lot of heart.

Massive well done to all the girls for their effort, teamwork, and grit—and a special shoutout to Grace, our well-deserved Panther of the Week! 🐾

U14s Tournament Round-Up 🏉

What a brilliant day for our U14s! We teamed up with five players from Dalkeith, and it was fantastic to see the girls bond so quickly and play as one united squad. The teamwork, energy, and spirit were spot on from the first whistle.

Across four games, we faced a Borders side (Peebles, Kelso, Berwick) twice, and a combined Lasswade/Boroughmuir/Watsonians team twice. Every match was tight and competitive—though I’ll admit, I’m terrible at keeping score, so if anyone’s got the final tallies, feel free to enlighten me!

Elsa was charging through with some powerful carries, and Molly was a menace at the breakdown with some brilliant ruck steals. The whole team showed great awareness with offloads before and during contact, keeping the ball alive and the pressure on.

We’re still building confidence in both attack and defence, and I have to remind myself—these girls are still new to rugby at this level, and they’re learning fast. This week, we’ll focus on beating defenders and improving our front-on tackling to keep that momentum going.

Huge well done to all the girls for their effort and attitude—and a special shoutout to Grace, our well-earned Panther of the Week! 🐆

And finally, happy birthday to Leyla, and happy anniversary to Geoff and Lynne—hope you had a lovely morning celebrating while we were out causing chaos on the pitch!

Dave & Geoff

Click below for a video of the U12’s

This Week

Wednesday Night Training Vibes 🏉

We had two new girls join us tonight—brilliant to see fresh faces, but the excitement definitely kept the group buzzing (and slightly distracted!).

We kicked things off with some mobility work to get everyone moving, followed by relay races to raise the tempo. After reflecting on the weekend’s U14s matches, it was clear we needed to build more confidence in tight attacking and defensive situations. So tonight’s focus was all about beating defenders in close quarters and learning how to reset quickly as a defensive unit.

We wrapped it all into a high-energy touch game to apply what we’d worked on. Ideally, we’d have added some contact drills, but with two new players and a few forgotten mouthguards, we kept things safe and focused on technique.

Great effort from everyone—looking forward to building on this.

This weekend we travel to Tranent for the latest Evolution Rugby Series.

Its a 10am meet at Meadowmill Sports Centre EH33 1LZ

Watch the video below for some of Wednesdays Training

Last Weekend

Penicuik vs. Portobello

In an exciting match at Montgomery Park,  Penicuik and Portobello clashed in a game filled with skilful play and committed tackling. The first phase saw Penicuik pushing forward with strong possession, but a lapse in concentration allowed Portobello to score first, taking a 0-5 lead. Penicuik quickly responded with the ball being brilliantly fed to Logan who weaved through the Portobello defence to level the score at 5-5, with Callan’s conversion putting them ahead 7-5.

The second phase began with Portobello breaking through early, scoring and converting to lead 7-12. Despite Callum’s powerful play, Penicuik couldn’t stem the flow.  Penicuik then lost Callum to injury, and Portobello took advantage , extending their lead to 7-19. Penicuik struggled to regain their footing as Portobello surged, scoring effortlessly to make it 7-33 by the end of the phase.

In the third phase, Penicuik showed resilience and fight with Arran and Logan scoring three try’s between them, narrowing the gap to 28-43. However, Portobello’s relentless attack proved too much, as they sealed their victory with a final score to end the match with a 28-50 scoreline. 

Portobello’s second phase dominance secured their win, while Penicuik’s spirited efforts and drive highlighted their potential in a thrilling encounter. 

Penicuik : Pople-Royan, Hay, Murdoch, Hales, Betteridge, Nicol, Morgan, Watson, McCreath, Hogg, Collett, Brash, Ward, Harris, An Other

Scores :

Tries : McCreath (3) Hogg

Cons : Watson (2) Brash

This Week

No Action this weekend.

Penicuik Women’s Rugby

What a week for the Penicuik Rugby women’s team! Our squad continues to grow with new players joining week on week, and the buzz around training and the club is fantastic.

On Saturday, some of our players attended the club’s Sponsors Day – a great opportunity to meet some of Penicuik Rugby’s amazing sponsors while also cheering on the men’s 1st XV in their first league match of the season. It’s brilliant to feel so much a part of the wider Penicuik Rugby family.

Wednesday’s training session was our biggest yet, with 15 women taking to the pitch. There were plenty of smiles and banter as everyone put in a great effort. Some of our newest players even got to hit the tackling pads for the first time, and we wrapped things up with a fun game of touch rugby.

We’re still welcoming new players of all abilities – whether you’re experienced or brand new to the sport. Training runs every Wednesday at 7 pm at Montgomery Park in Penicuik. Come along and give it a try!

Click below for footage

1xv

Last Weekend

Penicuik 30 – 39 Leith

Click below to hear from 1xv head coach Kris on last weeks loss to Leith

This Week

The squad travel down to Earlston, who won last weekend at home to Quins 25-20 in a game which could have gone to either side.   Earlston scored in the final minute from winger Richardson who went up the blind side to score in the corner having been down going into the final 10mins.

Earlston have recruited well over the summer and their scrum caused Quins all sort of problems last Saturday.

Click the link for the Earlston team for Saturday – Earlston team v Penicuik

Penicuik and Earlston have enjoyed some great games over the years, however for a long while, the Haugh was very much a bogey ground for the Montgomery Park men with victories very few and when arrived were very hard fought.. Who can remember James Groom’s last minute penalty to snatch the win??

Here’s photos from the archives that we think is 2012, with a 1xv featuring several current coaches from our Hunters & midi section https://www.pitchero.com/clubs/earlston/photos/earlston-vs-penicuik-73245.html 

Penicuik’s last outing at Earlston was October 2018 in a thrilling 21-11 win with a squad featuring current players Aidan Dean, Luke Di Rollo and Semesa Maiyale who are all named today.

Head coach Kris has made several changes to the side which lost last weekend, Paul Smith comes in at flanker with Liddle moving to 8.  Alan Haynes has recovered from illness to make his first appearance of the season at 10.  After impressing off the bench last weekend Ethan starts at 12 with Doyle moving to the wing following his 2 wide tries last weekend.  On the bench we welcome back Sammy after injury and also a very welcome return to Luke Di Rollo who last pulled on the Penicuik jersey Nov 2023 against Corstorphine .

Click below for the full team

1xv TEAM

2xv

Our 2xv travel to Inverleith Park and a visit to the Bunker to take on Edinburgh Northern, this is always a tasty affair and guaranteed to keep the sidelines entertained.

Last weekend Northern were beaten by a strong Currie 3xv side 54-5, due to insufficient players from Leith our own players were given the afternoon off and a 28-0 win recorded in their favour.

Click below for your 2xv side