Ayr v Heriot's - BT Premiership final preview

On the day that marks 400 years since the death of the world's greatest playwright, William Shakespeare, there will be no shortage of drama on Saturday as Ayr face Heriot's in the BT Premiership play-off final at Millbrae.

A huge crowd is expected to watch the culmination of yet another wonderful season of BT Premiership rugby. Third-placed Heriot's will be full of confidence after their BT Cup win last week, but table-toppers Ayr are entirely focussed being crowned champions.

'Our preparation for this match has gone well,' says Ayr head coach Calum Forrester, 'and the players can't wait to get out and play in front of the home fans. Both teams like to play with ball in hand and with a number of the outstanding players in the BT Premiership on show, this Saturday is set to be a great spectacle of Scottish club rugby.'

After the stellar performance against Melrose in the semi-final, all but one keep their place in the starting XV. Hooker David Young misses out after sustaining a farming-related injury, with recent Glasgow Warriors signing James Malcolm taking his place.

Scotland U20s cap Lewis Anderson and Warrior D'arcy Rae are on a dynamic-looking bench alongside back rower Andrew Dunlop, who makes his final appearance in an Ayr squad after ten seasons with the club.

Ayr:
15. Grant Anderson; 14. Junior Bulumakau, 13. Ross Curle (c), 12. Danny McCluskey, 11. Craig Gossman; 10. Frazier Climo, 9. David Armstrong; 1. George Hunter, 2. James Malcolm, 3. Javan Sebastian; 4. Rob McAlpine, 5. Scott Sutherland; 6. Blair Macpherson, 7. Will Bordill, 8. Pete McCallum.

Replacements:
16. Lewis Anderson, 17. D'arcy Rae, 18. Craig Stevenson, 19. Andrew Dunlop, 20. Archie Russell, 21. Richard Dalgleish, 22. Haddon McPherson.

Heriot's:
15. John Semple; 14. Charlie Simpson, 13. Liam Steele, 12. Cameron Ferguson, 11. John Rae; 10. Gregor McNeish, 9. Tom Wilson; 1. Martin Bouab, 2. Michael Liness, 3. Struan Cessford; 4. Russell Nimmo, 5. Jack Turley; 6. Straun Dewar, 7. Jason Hill, 8. Alex Henderson.

Replacements:
16. Neil Cochrane, 17. Murray McCallum, 18. Roan Van Heerden, 19. Jamie Syme, 20. Hugh Fraser, 21. Glenn Bryce, 22. Max Learmonth.


Kick-off 3pm! Follow the scores live on Twitter or watch live on YouTube.

Admission: £10 for adults, £5 for over-60s and U18s free!

Ayr Ladies U15s and U18s get play underway at 12pm and 1pm against their counterparts from Annan RFC. Then, entertainment will be provided by Elite Pro Dance, Ethical Ales will be serving locally-produced ale, lager and IPA, and there will be post-match music and food from 6.30pm in the clubhouse.