Reduced to tears

But, with an RBS Cup semi-final against Glasgow Hawks to look forward to this weekend and two matches to follow for a place in the Border League final, the players know they have little time for sentiment if they want to salvage their season.

Reflecting on the defeat to Ayr which handed Melrose the championship, Graham, junior, told the Border Telegraph: “The league is over but our season isn’t over yet. We’ve still got a bit of silverware that we could win. We just need to keep focused and keep going.

“There wasn’t much being said in the changing room at full-time. There were a few tears in a few boys eyes. It means a lot to the boys, we’re all proud players and we all enjoy playing for Gala. There are boys here who have come here through the Minis and the youth setup and then to get so close to the title and then let it slip was hard to take.” But he added: “We had a quiet word at the end saying it’s not the end of the world. We’ve got the semi-final which we have to pick ourselves up for. It will be a hard task against a big Glasgow Hawks side. And then we’ve got the Border League.” The Gala captain missed the title deciding match through injury but he revealed he hoped to return to help his teammates in their quest for silverware this season.

“I maybe could have played but I wouldn’t have done myself or the team any favours,” Graham explained. “I would have been putting them under pressure all the time, I wouldn’t have been able to make tackles that I should be making, I wouldn’t have been able to pass as well as I normally pass. It would have been detrimental to the team. And it would have put us back rather than put us forward.

“My dad (head coach George Graham) wanted me to train on Tuesday just to see what it (injury) was like. And the first pass I threw, I knew then. I kept telling myself it would be alright but I think deep down I knew it wasn’t to be.” When asked what it was like watching the Ayr game from the touchline, he added: “It was brutal, absolutely brutal, knowing that I had no control at all. All I could do was shout. And, unfortunately, shouting doesn’t get you anywhere when you are playing a game of rugby.” In the end, Gala lost the title by just a single point, having lost to Ayr by just a single point, despite defeating the former champions at Millbrae earlier in the season.

If they had won they would have been crowned Scottish champions for the first time in 31 years.

Graham said: “That’s the fine margins of rugby. It was always going to be close at the end of the season.

“For the supporters it would have been nail-biting, it would have been brilliant rugby to watch. But for ourselves, personally, I think we just made too many mistakes. In the first half, we let them score too many tries. It’s hard to come back from that, especially against a quality side like Ayr.

“They won it last year and they weren’t going to give it up lightly. They couldn’t win it this year but I think they wanted to give it a good show in their last game, I think that was their coach’s last game as well. And that’s what they did.” While Gala prop Rory Sutherland has been tipped to move on at the end of the season, Graham revealed the Maroons have a squad capable of lifting the RBS Premiership title - if they can stay together for another year.

He said: “It’s been the same core squad during the five years that my dad has been here and if you keep that same core you are going to get better. We started in Premier Two, we went up to Prem One, and we’ve got better every year.

“There are a few players here who could easily go pro. Rory Sutherland is some player, if he doesn’t get snapped up by someone I will be very surprised. We’re looking to keep everybody but if they go on to bigger and better things then we will support them all the way.”