Falkirk Rugby Club: Loss to champions a lesson, says Grieve

Speaking to the Herald, he said: “We managed to give debuts to a few youngsters to give them an idea what it is like to be playing at that level, and what it takes to get there.

"They are team that is going up to the next league for a reason and it was a chance for all of our players to realise what we need to do over the next couple of years to get back to that place.”

Of the match, he added: “Some of our play was good and we scored a couple of very good tries but they are an excellent side.

"I can’t fault our work effort, which was superb, but to beat them we would have needed to be consistent in our performance, and we weren’t.

“It wasn’t an unexpected result because they have some really talented youngsters and ex-professionals.”

Falkirk now finish their season next weekend against Gordonians to round off a mid-table campaign.

They currently sit seventh in the standings on 53 points from 21 matches,

“We’ll have a review of the season in the coming weeks and we’ll go over the good and bad parts of how the campaign went and let the players enjoy a well-deserved break,” he said.

“Recruitment for next season is key for us and that will really be a focus for us over the summer. One or two players who can bring experience to the side are crucial and we want players who can support the younger ones coming through.

“We won’t be ready for promotion for a year or so, which is just an honest look at where we are at the moment.

“Gaining more experience in match situations only comes with time, and winning games ugly is the type of know-how we need to eventually find.”

He thinks that the club are capable of finishing nearer the top next year, though.

“A top-three finish isn’t out of the question next year and we will aim for that,” he added.

“When teams are relegated out of Division 1, they tend to fall, but we stopped that trend and stabilised, which isn’t a bad thing at all.”