Highland Stags have high expectations for 2023 British American Football Association campaign as fixture list is released
Highland Stags are set to begin preparation for their 2023 American football season in earnest.
The Stags held two rookie days – one in Lossiemouth and one in Inverness – to recruit new players to the sport and give existing team members a refresher of the basics.
Fixtures have also been released for the upcoming season, with the club moving up to the Division One North as part of a restructure of the BAFA leagues.
The governing body have tried to keep travelling expenses as low as possible, meaning the Stags have been joined by some familiar foes in the higher tier.
Now at Canal Park, the Highlanders will go up against Aberdeen Roughnecks, Clyde Valley Blackhawks, Dunfermline Kings and Glasgow Tigers, starting with the Blackhawks on April 23 in Inverness.
After sweeping the board in Division Two North last year, expectations may be high that the Stags can win their conference again – both inside and out of the club.
"We have targets that we try to meet each year, and we would have been looking at potentially winning enough games to consolidate our position in Division One, whereas now we're actually looking at the play-offs," general manager Tom Hutchison said.
"We want to get back to the play-offs this year, and knowing the teams that we're going to face I think we've got a good chance.
"That said, the pressure is definitely on to improve. Our game has to improve and our skill level has to improve, but also our facilities and how we manage the club has got to take the next step as well.
"We moved to Highland Rugby Club because it's a step up from Invergordon, committee-wise we've got to step forward and put ourselves out there, and we're actively looking for more sponsors on top of that too.
"These are all things we need to progress and hopefully help us to the play-offs again this year, and do well.
"Because we did so well last year and the year before, I'm sure there will be a target on our backs from the other Scottish teams."
On the face of it, it is difficult to improve on last year's perfect conference record, but Hutchison insists it is possible.
"We're going from playing eight games in our regular season to 10 games this year, so there is a way to improve," he reasoned.
"Our win percentage can't improve obviously, it was 100 per cent in the regular season last year, but we had some performances where we could have done better, and some games that were closer than we felt they should have been.
"I have no doubt that we can win, it's about whether we put the work in to get there."