A TEAM of talented teenagers are hoping to clinch a national prize at the home of Scottish rugby.

East Lothian Girls take on Stirling County in the final of the Under-16 Girls’ National Cup at BT Murrayfield on Sunday morning.

The match is one of four contests played at the Edinburgh venue over a busy weekend – and one that the team and coaching staff were eagerly looking forward to.

Craig Robertson, Andy Napier and Roger Woods will be on the sidelines cheering on the team, who have reached the final after progressing through a challenging group phase undefeated.

Robertson spoke to Courier Sport on Tuesday afternoon and admitted that it had been a long week ahead of the final.

He said: “It is a huge step up.

“We had a training session last night and the girls were asking what it would be like.

“The big thing is the shield final, which features the losing semi-finalists, is going to be at the DAM Health Stadium [home of Edinburgh Rugby and adjacent to Murrayfield] and our girls, because they are in final, are going to be on the main pitch at Murrayfield.

“It is the ultimate: you cannot play anywhere better in Scotland.

“They are absolutely buzzing with this and going into the size of arena, being in the dressing rooms, getting to see people. It is really good.”

East Lothian Courier: East Lothian Girls are through to the final of the Under-16 Girls’ National Cup at BT MurrayfieldEast Lothian Girls are through to the final of the Under-16 Girls’ National Cup at BT Murrayfield

The team is made up of youngsters aged 14-16 and has grown over the last five years.

Originally centred on Preston Lodge High School, the team has expanded and will include teenagers from Musselburgh Grammar School, Ross High School, North Berwick High School and Dunbar Grammar School this weekend.

The cup competition is split into two different groups, with East Lothian Girls in the second group alongside Biggar, Stirling County, Dumfries Saints, Kelpies and West of Scotland.

The East Lothian side opened with a 40-22 victory away to Kelpies before defeating this weekend’s opponents 30-10.

A 55-10 win in Dumfries was followed by a 50-0 triumph over West of Scotland.

The group phase was then wrapped up with a 33-33 draw with Biggar, which put East Lothian Girls into the semi-finals against Caithness.

The semi-final clash was twice postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, with East Lothian Girls then awarded the tie.

East Lothian Courier: East Lothian Girls (pink and blue) are through to the final of the Under-16 Girls’ National Cup at BT MurrayfieldEast Lothian Girls (pink and blue) are through to the final of the Under-16 Girls’ National Cup at BT Murrayfield

Robertson was anticipating a tight encounter in the 10.45am kick-off.

He said: “It is a level playing field.

“We have played them on a few occasions but it has always been a close-run game.

Regardless of the outcome, the kids have done a damn good job.

“We beat them in the preliminary rounds and have played them at tournaments before and beaten them but it has always been close.

“It is certainly going to be a tough game – I would not say we are going out there and thinking we’ve got it in the bag.”

Some members of the squad will also be travelling into the Capital on Saturday as Scotland take on England in the opening round of fixtures of the TikTok Women’s Six Nations.

Robertson said that the success of East Lothian’s rugby stars – including Megan Gaffney, Annabel Sergeant and Liz Musgrove – on the national stage was a huge motivating factor for his team.