Date: Saturday, 9th October 2004
Kickoff time: 15:00
Against: Hawick
Team: Hawks 1st XV
Location: Home
Competition: Premiership Division 1
Final score: 40 - 14 (won)

Hawks 1st and 2nd xvs both beat Hawick at Old Anniesland today The 1st xv won 40-14 to remain top of Premier 1 whilst the 2xv won 47-18 in their 2xv League Div 1 match. Match report fro Alasdair Reid of the Sunday Herald; Glasgow Hawks 40-14 Hawick Sparkle appears in the end Alasdair Reid at Old Anniesland Towards the end there was a spring in the Hawks’ step and some sparkle in their running, but it was a flourishing finish to an otherwise grim match that allowed Ricky Munday to collect a hat-trick of tries. They gathered the bonus point that protected their position at the top of the BT Premiership in workmanlike fashion, but Peter Wright, their demanding coach, would have been startled by the looseness of some of their early play. Ultimately, the Hawks won because they had a marked superiority in a handful of significant areas rather than any glow of all-round excellence. This was a scrappy, feisty contest, riddled with errors and overseen by a maddeningly pernickety referee. You could pick out the odd cameo in the Hawks’ side for commendation, and you would also have warmed to the resilience of Hawick in the later stages, but the spectacle as a whole was alarmingly scrappy. It also speaks volumes that three of the Hawks’ six tries came directly from catch-and-drive lineouts. That they had the confidence to kick for touch in the first place says much for the attitude they brought into the match, and the final scoreline was an adequate reflection of the difference between the two sides. Hawick had neither the forward power nor the quickness in the backs to close the gap. The penultimate Hawks’ try, in the 75th minute, well illustrated the gulf in quality that was on display. Having earned a position near the right touchline, the Hawks moved the ball to the left, with a significant thrust from the excellent Steve Swindall, comfortably the best player on the pitch, and a wonderfully weighted pass from Stuart Low saw Munday looping into the corner. Flowing by now, Hawks collected their sixth try in the last move of the match with an equally dazzling contribution from Mike Adamson, the fly-half who kicked superbly throughout, whose deft dummy allowed Munday to spear through and touch down. Swindall had set the Hawks’ ball rolling with a 14th-minute try that demonstrated the power of their pack. It came from a lineout near the left corner flag, and although Hawick held up the initial drive they could not stop Swindall when he hit the ball with pace, the No 8 powering over from short range. That pattern was seen time and again, for even though Hawick managed to stay in touch with a couple of Garry Law penalties, they were always vulnerable to the quick transfers and raw power of the Hawks forwards’. The Hawks reached the interval with a 14-6 lead, Fergus Thomson having bashed over for the second try from another short-range lineout. A swarming attack three minutes into the second period produced Munday’s first try, effectively killing the contest. There was some consolation for Hawick in the try Roddy Deans collected for them in the 62nd minute, but Swindall had already claimed his second for Hawick by that point. The road back to the Borders must have seemed very long last night. Glasgow Hawks: C Shaw; W Henry, A Maclay, R Munday, S Low; M Adamson, K Sinclair; E Milligan, F Thomson (J Maclay, 46), P Dalton (G Mories, 60), G Perret, R Maxton (R Gillies, 60; R McKnight, 60), S Warnock, N McKenzie, S Swindall. Hawick: C Murray; K Hedley, G Law, J Houston, C Bruce; B Sutherland (D McCracken, 65), K Reid; A Gillies, M Landels, J McDevitt (W Blacklock, 24), J Coetzee, I Elliot (G Petrie, 52), B Keown, R Deans, D Landels. Referee: M Hall (Boroughmuir). -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Back to News Page News Archive - No team list has been added yet.

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