Date: Saturday, 19th October 2013
Kickoff time: 15:00
Against: Aberdeen GSFP
Team: Hawks 1st XV
Location: Away
Competition: Premiership Division 1
Final score: 23 - 20 (won)

Aberdeen Grammar 20 Glasgow Hawks 23 “I like kicking in the gutter and Wishing I was lucky Wishing I was lucky, wishing I was lucky I was wishing I was lucky.” It was Wet, Wet, Wet all across Scotland on Saturday, from Glasgow to Aberdeen it poured down in biblical proportions. What did it matter? Well it had a huge impact on the game at Rubislaw. Arguably, any Glasgow side should be able to cope with weather conditions and Hawks did so admirably. From the kick off Hawks had the best of the action as Grammar’s Tom Preece knocked on, conceding the scrum. Hawks pack took the opportunity to put a big squeeze on Aberdeen supplying a solid base for Ross Miller to pick up combining with Sean Yacoubian. As they went down the blind-side, Haddon McPherson was unlucky to knock on when tackled. The early pressure saw Aberdeen concede a penalty which Scott Wight slotted over with ease. (0-3) Aberdeen’s restart saw them immediately on the attack and Hawks were quickly reduced to 14 men when wing Ally MacLay was shown a yellow card and given a mandatory 10 minute break as he tripped an Aberdeen player who was making a break. The consequent penalty, just inside the Hawks half saw Aberdeen break through the Hawks’ defence. They attack was stopped short before Gordi Reid went over from short range. Stand-off, Grant Clow who had a wretched day place kicking missed the conversion but Hawks were now behind. (3-5) Both sides struggled to make headway as the rain increased in intensity, but Jack Steele managed to put Hawks in the lead just before 20 minutes had passed with a long range kick from half-way. (5-6) This narrow lead was quickly extended when from the restart they put Aberdeen under immediate pressure. The pack mauled the ball forward and pushing home their advantage Hawks recycled at will, before it fell to hooker Jack MacFarlane, to go over for Hawks’ first try. As Wight added the extras Hawks had established a clear advantage. (5-13) Hawks pack had a clear advantage, Brendan Cullinane dominated pro-prop, Reid, in the scrum and his brother in the front row Stephen Findlay was scrimmaging outstandingly. In the loose as well, Findlay was also causing Aberdeen difficulty with a series of hard drives, which had the vociferous Hawks support bellowing his nickname. Hawks spent much of the half in the visiting 22 and it came as a blow that instead of turning this advantage into points they found themselves conceding the score. Aberdeen were defending deep in their own 22 when the ball came the big Fijian winger Peceli Nacamavuto who raced through the watching Hawks defence. He ran out of his 22, passing his own ten metre line and into the visitors half. He put he pass to Will Wardlaw who was running in support before the centre put the scoring pass to Harry Duthie for a sensational try. (10-13) As the second half started, Hawks were rueing such a small lead after so much pressure. The pack put the screws on Aberdeen with another dominant scrimmage in just under ten minutes, Miller picked up from the base and New Zealand debutant, Dan Smart, put a clever kick over the Aberdeen cover and towards the home line. Haddon McPherson ran onto the ball and went over for his 7th try of the current season. With Wight converting there was a clear lead which the Warriors stand-off extended with a penalty a few minutes later. (10-23) They game was grinding to a slow halt and Aberdeen tried to master the conditions. Just after the hour Preece was over for the home side to narrow the gap to 8 points. (15-23) Both sides seemed out on their feet as the wet conditions and heavy pitch sapped the energy levels of even the fittest players. A drop kick in 72 minutes came off the posts and, whilst not troubling the scorer put the home side in trouble and they were fortunate to scramble the ball away. The closing passage saw Aberdeen put Hawks under pressure and when Nacamavuto went over for a late try, it secured two points for Aberdeen. (20-23) There was a sense of blessed relief when Smart put the ball into touch to end the match as Hawks finally found themselves on the winning side of a tight score after taking so many losing bonuses. There was a degree of luck about the result but it was luck that had eluded Hawks all season and as Arnold Palmer said, “It's a funny thing, the more I practice the luckier I get.” Aberdeen Grammar 20 Glasgow Hawks 23 Grammar Tries​Reid 11, Duthie 39, Preece 61, Nacamavuto 80 Hawks Tries​MacFarlane 22, McPherson 49 Con ​Wight 22, 49 Pen​Wight 4, 52, Steele 19 Hawks finished the first half of the league season with a win away from home in atrocious conditions at Rubislaw. Despite being outscored 2 tries to 4, Hawks controlled the match to secure the four points on offer although as a former Aberdonian coach might say, it was squeaky bum time towards the end. Early pressure saw the Glasgow side awarded a penalty which Scott Wight slotted over easily in 4 minutes. Immediately after the kick off, Ally MacLay was sent to the naughty step for ten minutes when an Aberdeen player “tripped over him”*. From the consequent penalty, Aberdeen forced themselves into the visitor’s 22 as Glasgow pro, Gordi Reid went over from short range. With the home stand-off Grant Clow having a desperate day with his place kicking, he missed the most goalable of his pots at goal. Hawks pulled ahead by the narrowest of margins when Jack Steele put a secon penalty over just before 20 minutes. From the restart Hawks sprung into attack and a sustained period of play saw the ball recycled seceral time before hooker Jack MacFarlane went over for Hawks try which Wight converted. Hawks looked comfortable with their 8 point lead and the pack had the upper hand in the set piece and the loose. It then came as a shock just before half-time when Hawks had been pressing that Peceli Nacamavuto burst from deep inside his own 22, over his ten metres and into Hawks half without, tackles sliding of him like the rain on the stand roof.. Even when tackled he managed to offload to Wiil Wardlaw who although still caught short of the line was able to give a scoring pass to Harry Duthie. At half-time the gap was down to 3 points which seemed scant reward for the Hawks effort. Ten minutes into the second half kiwi newby, Dan Smart, put a clever chip in which had Haddon McPherson on the end of it for his sixth try of the season and Hawks’ second of the afternoon. With the extras the lead was now ten points and Wight extended that as he knocked over a penalty in 52 minutes. The weather was clearly sapping the energy of both sides and it increasingly looked like a prize-fight between two heavyweights in the 15th round. Aberdeen gave themselves a lift just after the hour as Tom Preece scored a third try, but Aberdeen struggled to come to terms with the solid Hawks’ defensive effort. In 80 minutes it drew close as the Fijian, Nacamavuto went over for a late try, which gave the home side two bonus points, but that is what they were bonuses as Hawks left with the real prize. Team list for this match Ally Maclay Andrew Kirkland Andrew Linton Andy White Brendan Cullihane Callum Kerr Haddon Mcpherson Jack Macfarlane Jack Steele James Gormley Mateusz Bartoszek Robert Beattie Sean Yacoubian Stephen Leckey Steven Findlay

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