From the match programme:-
"WELCOME"
"It gives me great pleasure to welcome our friends from Peebles Rugby Football Club to Rodney Parade this evening for tonight's Welsh/Scottish Challenge match."
"In many ways, eve-of-international meetings between Welsh teams and visitors from the other four home countries became victims of the modern, professional era in the early & mid 1990's. Newport Rugby however, are delighted to be reversing yet another trend as we resurrect this type of cross-border competition which was always as important as a social get-together as it was a true rugby contest."
"As a regular visitor to the Hydro Hotel at Peebles I can heartify recommend the area to anybody from Newport, Peebles is only 20 miles south of the great city of Edinburgh but offers some of the best countryside anywhere in the UK. The tour party from Peebles is led by their President, Alan Beverage, and he, his committee, and his Team are very welcome visitors. Similarly, Peebles supporters who, for this evening anyway, will include anyone from north of the border down in Wales for tomorrow's Wales/Scotland Six Nations match are all very welcome here at Rodney Parade - home of the Black & Ambers. We bid you all the warmest of welcomes!!"
"Let me also take this opportunity to congratulate Peebles on a very successful season. They have just won the Division 2 title, securing, in the process, promotion to the Scottish Premier Division next season. There's no doubt that Scottish Borders rugby will benefit greatly from having another of its club sides playing Premiership rugby and, for the population of Peebles This season's title is a just reward for more than eighty years of proud rugby tradition."
"As far as we are aware our two clubs have never met before so tonight's fixture marks an historic start to a weekend full of Celtic expectation!"
"Keith Grainger"
"Chief Executive"