CLIFFORD Livingstone has challenged his young side to make Neilson Park a fortress as they bid to push for promotion.
Haddington’s home form has been impressive this campaign, with just a single loss from their four encounters.
Linlithgow make the trip to East Lothian this Saturday and Livingstone (pictured) will be looking to keep the pressure on the top two in East League Division One, Royal High and Ross High.
He said: “Linlithgow have got good school rugby and they play in the right manner.
“However, we try to say to the players that it is Neilson Park and we have only lost one game there.
“We did not play well against Broughton [who won 24-27] and it hurt the boys that a team can come down here and win.
“We will be confident going into the game and want to win at home.
“We have not played Linlithgow yet but you look at their results and they look alright.
“It will be a hard game but we have got nobody injured from Saturday and, providing nobody is going to Benidorm or Tenerife, then we will be fine.”
Haddington’s latest result, victory over Forrester at the weekend, saw them jump above their rivals and up to third in the table.
The coach felt the team were heading in the right direction and growing as a squad on a weekly basis.
Livingstone’s connection with Haddington stretches back more than 20 years.
He has played and coached the team to success and winning the first tier of the east regional leagues would mark the fourth promotion on his CV.
The current side has a youthful look to it, with a number of teenagers making their first steps in the sport.
The head coach said: “We are happy with the team. We have a very, very young team.
“We have got an 18-year-old prop, an 18-year-old scrum half who has never played senior rugby.
“They are playing well and some of our experienced boys – Callum Pate is only 22 and has played for the last three years – we are asking him to make decisions, which is hard, but it is getting better all the time.”
Haddington RFC has also been boosted by impressive numbers returning to the club.
The club’s second string have had enough players coming forward to ensure they are also playing on a weekly basis and have enjoyed impressive results.
However, Livingstone noted there was a generation who appeared to have slipped away during the coronavirus pandemic.
He encouraged them to come back and said: “The middle age group, through Covid maybe, found other things to do.
“Maybe a lot of clubs have found it hard with the middle ground – players are either 18 to 20 or 35 or 36.”
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