Hawick and Melrose are at home, to Glasgow Hutchesons’ Aloysians, last term’s Arnold Clark National League Division 1 champions, and Edinburgh’s Heriot’s respectively and Selkirk and Kelso are away, at Currie Chieftains and Watsonians, all 3pm kick-offs. All four clubs go into next season with the same head coaches as last time round – Graham Hogg at Hawick, Scott Wight and Iain Chisholm at Melrose, Gordon Henderson at Selkirk and Nikki Walker and Bruce McNeil at Kelso. All but one have changed their skippering arrangements, however. Fraser Renwick takes over from Shawn Muir at Mansfield Park, Corey Tait replaces Aaron McColm as co-captain with Andrew McColm at Philiphaugh and Dan Gamble steps into Keith Melbourne’s shoes as co-skipper with Dwain Patterson at Poynder Park. Melrose will be continuing as they were, though, with Angus Runciman carrying on captaining. Hawick last met GHA in February 2023, edging them out by 15-13 at home to confirm their relegation from the premiership, and last term’s equivalent fixtures for the region’s other top-flight teams yielded a 35-22 loss for Melrose to Heriot’s last August, a 54-31 defeat for Selkirk in Balerno in October and a 24-17 victory for Kelso at Myreside Stadium in November. The new season’s first Borders derby – Kelso hosting Hawick – arrives the Saturday after, August 30, with four more following over the next four weekends. Kelso won last term’s equivalent game by 41-17 in March after losing October’s reverse fixture by 52-12. Hawick are at home to Selkirk on September 6 and Melrose are away to Kelso seven days later, with the Souters hitting the road to Kelso on September 20 and hosting Melrose on October 4, all Saturdays with 3pm kick-offs. With Borderers now accounting for 40% of the ten-team premiership, up from a third of last term’s 12-strong version, there are derbies aplenty – a dozen in total – and there’s another before October is out, Hawick hosting Melrose on Saturday the 25th, with another, the Greens at home to Kelso, following on Saturday, November 29. As things stand and weather allowing, the premiership is scheduled to wrap up on Saturday, February 7, with Melrose at home to Hawick and Selkirk travelling to Ayr, last season’s champions, Kelso having been at Currie the night before. Selkirk finished highest up the table of the region’s premiership clubs last time round, ending up fifth, on 61 points, after 22 fixtures, with Melrose sixth on 56, Hawick seventh on 53 and Kelso ninth on 46. Year on year, that was up four places from second-bottom of ten for the Souters, up 11 for Melrose on fifth place a division down, down six for Hawick after claiming pole position and down five for Kelso. Next season’s fixture lists can be seen at https://fixtures.scottishrugby.org/club-rugby