Boroughmuir opened against Glasgow Hawks with
a strong wind at their backs and hoping to take early
advantage to overturn the result from the game at Old
Anniesland in October. 'Muir took advantage of the wind to
dominate territory in the early minutes of the game but too
many handling errors saw them unable to gain the advantage
on the scoreboard.
The breakthrough came on 11 minutes when Andy
Knight, starting at scrum-half, got under the skin of his
opposite number and drew a penalty as he pressured the Hawks
scrum. The referee spotted an arm swung in frustration and
Bruce Aitchison kicked the 3 points to put 'Muir ahead.
The lead was not to last long as Hawks
quickly realised that kicking into the wind was a losing
tactic and elected to keep the ball in hand. A series of
pounding runs into the heart of the 'Muir defence, led by
the bullocking No. 8, eventually paid dividends and with the
conversion added Hawks had a 3-7 lead against the elements,
if not the run of play.
'Muir continued to press but were unable to
make best use of the conditions as they turned the ball over
on too many occasions. As time progressed the 2s elected to
run the ball more and their first try came from a fine move
of the base of a ruck. The ball was swung wide to Stuart
Waddell who made inroads into the 22 before feeding Danny
Rutterford on his outside. The rejuvenated prop charged into
the Hawks defence the passed back inside for the supporting
Waddell to dive over the line. Aitchison's conversion saw
'Muir back into a lead they would never relinquish.
As the first period drew to a close Andy
Knight worked his magic to send James Fish in for his 6th
league try of the season. The veteran scrum-half spotted a
gap on the blindside as the 'Muir pack won quick ball at a
ruck in their own half. He set off for the line as as the
cover arrived he found Fish on his outside to beat the last
man an go over for the try. Aitchison added his third kick
of the half to see 'Muir establish 1 17 - 7 half time lead.
Many thought that 'Muir would struggle to
hold Hawks in the face of the gale for the second period and
indeed the visitors got the first score early in the half
after a period of sustained pressure. The conversion cut the
deficit to 3 points and it looked as though it would be
backs against the wall for 'Muir. The defence was always
under pressure but some fine tackling and a determination
not to be beaten saw 'Muir eventually turn the tide.
Just after the hour the 2s worked their way
upfield and Phil Bloomer broke the tackles from 10 metres
out to cross the line. Aitchison maintained his 100% record
with the boot to restore the 10 point lead and provide 'Muir
with something the defend.
Hawks refused to give up but the 2nd XV held
firm until deep into injury time before the visitors again
narrowed the gap to 3. But the referee had seen enough and
blew the final whistle on a hard fought but deserved win for
Boroughmuir. Considering the conditions both sides tried to
play good rugby and there was much to enjoy in the
encounter. Not least the result. Four teams beat the 2s in
the first half of the season and 'Muir have vowed revenge
against them all. One down three to go.
