Garioch Ladies RFC

Did you miss us?👀

Your favourite North-East Premiership side is BACK in action this weekend, as our 1XV travel down to the Capital to face Watsonian Women’s Rugby and Watsonian Wildcats in the first round of the Scottish Premiership😮‍💨

Watch this space for a team announcement, coming soon🔜

We’re so back😎

Arnold Clark Men's & Women's Premierships Altrad

Dave Duguid, the Garioch Ladies RFC head coach, knows it will be tough but he believes his side has the capabilities to compete in the Arnold Clark Premiership ahead of the new season starting at the weekend.

Last year was a tricky one for the Kellands Park outfit from Inverurie in the top flight, finishing bottom after stage one and stage two.

That meant that they had to go into the Regional Play-Off Series where they then managed to regroup and win that mini event to preserve their place in the league.

This year the team that finishes bottom in the eight-team Premiership will go down automatically because there is now a National League in place.

As a result, every game is important for Garioch starting with Watsonians away on Saturday while, with the change season in format, they are also back in the Sarah Beaney Cup for 2026-27.

And back at the helm is Duguid.

He was the head coach up until the end of the 2024-25 season, but was not involved last year.

“When there became an opportunity to come back in as head coach I put my hand up and luckily the club said yes,” Duguid explained.

“Last year was a bit of stop-start for a number of reason, but hopefully this year is a bit of a reset year and we can build from solid foundations.

“Pre-season has been good and everyone is pulling in the same direction so I am definitely looking forward to this year.

“We know the quality the likes of Stirling County, Watsonians and others in the Premiership have, but the Premiership is where we want to be as a club and we want to continue punching above our weight and representing the north-east as best as we can.

“We know we have good players who can play good rugby, but, whether it's within a game or over different games, we’ve not been able to string consistency together in the past.

“We have had phases in games where we show that we can definitely compete, but it's just about putting it all together into 80-minute performances.

“I am hopeful that we can do that this year.”

One thing that Garioch do not lack is team spirit and Duguid wants the players to harness that togetherness on the pitch to help them dig in for important results.

“Sometimes we are on the end of some tough defeats, but the girls’ heads never go down and with Sammy Ross as captain this year I think she will make sure that the environment is always good and that everyone is enjoying being part of something they enjoy,” he stated.

“We know that we won’t win every game, but if we can find some consistency in our performances and make it tricky for sides when they come up the road to Kellands Park then we can give ourselves a chance.

“Sometimes we lose players to relocation and such like and we always have to ‘go again’, but it is a privilege to be in the Premiership and we want to stay here.”

* A version of this article first appeared in The Press and Journal on Wednesday *

Our Garioch Ladies squad is going into their final week of preseason training this week before both teams kick off the season this Saturday.

Save the dates for our upcoming fixtures throughout the season as our 1XV competes in the Scottish Premiership and the Sarah Beaney Cup and our 2XV in the Caley North 2 League and the National Plate🤩

Follow us along on our journey this season, and watch this space for more info on this weekend’s teams👀

Arnold Clark Men's & Women's Premierships Altrad

Retaining her role as 1XV Vice Captain this season is Eilidh Craig🤩

A product of , Eilidh took on the role of VC during her second season with the Ladies’ side and we’re delighted to have her return to the role this season!

Eilidh is sponsored by Thistle Piping this season. If you or your organisation is interested in sponsoring a player this season, get in touch for more info! We still have plenty of players available who would appreciate the support🥰

Next up in our new leadership team is Dessy, who is stepping up to the role of 2XV Captain this season!

Dessy has been with us for a couple of seasons now, and has recently been called up to represent her home country Bulgaria in their national squad🤩

Thank you to Andy for sponsoring Dessy this season. If you or your organisation is interested in sponsoring a player this season, please do get in touch!

Welcome to the leadership team, Dessy! We can’t wait to see where you take the 2XV💃🏽

Another familiar face joins the leadership team this season, as Sammy returns to the role of 1XV Captain 🤩

We’re delighted to have Sammy back leading the team for the upcoming season. Her passion, commitment and experience make her a fantastic leader both on and off the pitch, and we can’t wait to see what the team achieves under her captaincy.

Sammy is sponsored by Zia Savel for the 26/27 season. If you or your organisation is interested in sponsoring a player this season, get in touch for more info!

Welcome back, Captain M**f! 💙💛

Reintroducing our Head Coach for the 2026-27 season…👀

We’re delighted to welcome Dave Duguid back as Ladies Head Coach after his hiatus last season.

The squad is excited to have Dave back leading training and matchdays, bringing his passion, experience, and commitment to developing the team both on and off the pitch.

We’re looking forward to building on last season’s progress and seeing what we can achieve together under Dave’s leadership.

Dave is sponsored by Hunter Construction this season. If you’re interested in sponsoring a player and/or coach this season, get in touch for more info.

Preseason has officially started for the Garioch Ladies, if you’re interested in giving rugby a go this summer drop us a message and come along to a session🤩

That’s our Dessy!! 🫶🫶

Women’s Beginners Bootcamps return to Inverurie this week!!🤩

Join us at Kellands Park every Thursday in June for some fitness, fun & friendship whilst introducing yourself to the wonderful sport of rugby🫶

Scan the QR code or drop us a message for more info. These sessions are completely FREE so bring a friend along too🤪🤪