EXCITEMENT is building ahead of an action-packed rugby festival returning to Galashiels.
Maroon’d@Gala will take place this weekend, showcasing top Borders rugby talent from P3 right through to senior.
Kings of the Sevens points are also up for grabs in the men’s tournament on Saturday.
A Gala spokesperson said: “Maroon’d is filled with some of the very best of Borders rugby, from tournaments for our minis right through to our senior tournament.
“New for this year will see S2 & S3 play on the Friday night where they will play other local high schools in a sevens tournament. We will have food vendors open, and the Friday night is free entry.
“The morning of Saturday will be see Netherdale filled with rugby action from Primary 3 right through to Primary 7 as the ‘Mini Maroons’ take centre stage. Our Primary 1s, 2s and rugby tots (aged three to four) will also take part in a live training session on the main pitch.
“As we move into the afternoon its the turn of the junior teams to take control. Our Gala Red Triangle tournament hosts the Borders U16s sevens, with our Gala Wanderers tournament opening the floor to Borders U18s sevens. These tournaments run alongside our Vixens tournaments which sees girls’ rugby played from ages S1 right through to S4. The finals for these tournaments are all played on the Netherdale main pitch giving the younger generation a taste of the formidable main-pitch atmosphere.
“Our senior sevens tournament will be part of the Borders 24/25 Kings of the Sevens series, meaning that valuable K7s points will be up for grabs. With Maroon’d@Gala being the third and final round of sevens before the season pauses to start the regular 15s campaign, absolutely everything will be to play for on the day.”
For the first time the festival has an after party, Maroon’d After Dark.
DJ Dougy Telfer will be playing from 8.30pm.
A free shuttle bus will be in operation on Saturday.
Buses are set to run to Netherdale every half an hour from the interchange, starting at 11.35am with the last bus at 4.05pm.
They will also head back to town every half an hour, starting at 7.30pm with the last bus leaving Netherdale at midnight.
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