Our end of season interviews continue with Freddie Roddick.
It was the first time Musselburgh were playing top flight rugby in 33 years, did you feel any pressure to make an impact and what were your expectations for the season?
"Being my first year for the club I guess I didn’t feel the pressure of ’33 years’ that much. I imagine that would have weighed on the senior players more than myself. I personally just wanted to try make a positive impact, on and off the field.'
Looking back to the first game of the season against Glasgow Hawks in the Scottish Cup, how confident were you of a win and getting the season off to the right start?
"I didn’t particularly know what to expect, but having trained and done pre-season with all the boys I was confident in the teams ability. We can beat anyone on our day and that turned out to be true; Hawks weren’t up to it, we beat them 3 from 3 this year."
The first half of the season had some ups and downs, where do you think the turning point was in the season?
"Accies away, we stopped showing teams too much respect, we didn’t get the result we wanted, but the performance was a good one. The performances from that game forward were better and the results seemed to follow."
What was your favourite game to play this season and why?
"Jed at home. I think Jeds kiwi 12 is still stuck somewhere in Roo Watts back pocket. The team as a whole played really well and I think it was nice to give them a good beating, when they came to Stoneyhill expecting to walk all over us."
Did you have any other favourite moments off the pitch this season?
"Off the pitch Musselburgh are the best team in Scotland. There have been loads of great moments off the pitch this season; the discovery of Kopperburg gin was a monumental moment. That stuff is magnificent. A shout out to Cammy Bain, he may not be a leader on the pitch, but he certainly leads off it. His ability to turn up to work every Sunday hanging out his mind is phenomenal. "
The outbreak of COVID-19 unfortunately caused the season to be null and void. What were your initial feelings after hearing this decision?
"I felt we had done more than enough to stay up anyway. So really, I just felt bad for Biggar and other clubs who were robbed of getting promoted from their leagues."
Knowing we will be definitely playing Premiership rugby again next year, what are your expectations for next season and what do you think will be different?
"We have definitely shown our potential in patches this year. If we are able to perform more consistently throughout the whole season, there is no reason why we can’t be in the mix for the playoffs come march next year. Nelly better get stocking up for the bar, it’s going to be a big year on and off the pitch. "