THE most unpredictable of seasons is fizzling out to an entirely predictable ending.

After all, it’s been a long slog for Ger Rossi, his backroom team and his players during a season of hope, joy, heartbreak and promise for everyone of a red and white persuasion at Whitestone Park.

When Rossi was appointed Peebles Rovers boss in the summer of 2016, his vision was clear; produce a team composed chiefly of local lads, supplemented with hand-picked imports from Stow, Innerleithen, Penicuik and Edinburgh - that not only would carve out a comfortable existence in the EOS, but actively seek to go toe-to-toe with league titans Leith Athletic, Lothian Thistle and Tynecastle.

It was a mission statement that wasn’t just bold - it was downright unthinkable.

Scarcely have local players in towns such as Peebles ever competed with the colossal resources at the disposal of their Edinburgh counterparts - not since Rovers’ glory days of the 1980s and 90s where the likes of Derek Learmond, Rab Linton and Gordon Lindsay brought a plethora of silverware back to Whitestone.

And, whilst much of this season has been a tumultuous vortex of disappointment, the performances of the local guys have been everything but that.

In the attacking department, the likes of Robbie Renwick and Saul Schulz-Keith have both enjoyed tremendous seasons- flourishing under Rossi’s tutelage as members of a forward group that combine flair and steel capable of remarkable attacking feats - as evidenced in Rovers’ fierce 7-2 shellacking of Tweedmouth Rangers in January.

At the back, a formidable defensive force has emerged- and whilst score-lines have done little to enhance the reputation of the budding back-line, their performance in crunch matches have often secured three points for Rovers on more than one occasion.

Ben Brown has swiftly forged a reputation for himself as one of the most consistent performers for Rovers this season at centre-half, whilst Michael Cockburn and Jamie Mackay continue to flourish at full-back.

It’s undoubtedly testament to the shrewd eye of the Peebles backroom staff, that summer arrival Ben McGinley has established himself as one of the finest goalkeepers in the EOS, whilst the figures of Colin Smith, Alan McMath, Lee Zavaroni and Rossi himself- provide an experienced backbone to a side barely out of their teenage years yet.

Now the manager hopes to end his first season with victory tomorrow over Tynecastle.

Rovers were beaten 4-0 by champions-elect Leith Athletic in their final home game of the season two weeks ago, but the Whitestone Park boss believes his side can atone for that defeat with a strong performance in Edinburgh,

Rossi said: “I think on analysing that Leith game, we need to look at the positives.

"The boys did well, watching it back on the tape I thought we defended resolutely in places and carved out some great opportunities to get back in the match against a very strong team.

“It was obviously frustrating what with it being our last home game, but the boys did themselves proud when you consider the vast gulf between many sides in this division and Leith.”

Tynecastle cross swords with the Rovers for the second time this season, with the capital club securing an emphatic 4-0 win at Whitestone on the opening day of the league campaign in August.

Rossi remains aware of the threat posed by the capital club, but wants his side to put in a positive performance to end the season on a positive note;

“We have to go into every match believing we can get a win- you can’t let doubt creep into your mindset going into these big games.

“It’ll be our first game in two weeks, and that’s a big reason why we’ve had such an up and down season because of these postponed games. The last time we were scheduled to play Tynecastle, we were coming off the back of a four-game winning run, so, in that respect, it’s been impossible to build any kind of momentum."