Date: Saturday, 27th November 2004
Kickoff time: 15:00
Against: Melrose
Team: Hawks 1st XV
Location: Home
Competition: Premiership Division 1
Final score: 22 - 5 (won)

The Herald reports; Glasgow Hawks 50 - 8 Melrose CALUM McNICOL at Old Anniesland November 29 2004 HALF-a-ton of points for the happy Hawks, but a whole heap of horrors for an abject Melrose side who hardly strung a pass together all day. If that sounds vaguely familiar to events that took place at Murrayfield 24 hours earlier, then, believe me, this was as much a contest. A satisfied Hawks coach, Peter Wright, stood beaming as he clapped the sides off the pitch, knowing leaders Heriot's are still within a wing-tip. But for the coaching team at Melrose the rest of the season looks like becoming one long scrap. Which is an apt word, given the Borderers propensity to launch a defence that was more fisty than feisty. Several times referee Grant Wilson had to blow long and hard to cease hostilities, mostly among the murk at breakdowns. But substitute Tom Hikila's red card after 72 minutes for blatant punching, after Mark Sitch and Ian Cornwall had indulged in a little handbags, was wholly deserved. Perhaps Rose's ire stemmed from an inability to match the rampaging Hawks' pack that created so much time and space for half-back pairing Iain Monaghan and Murray Strang, both starting their first Premier One game of the season. The former opened the scoring, charging down a poor clearance from the back of a five-metre scrum after only six minutes. Though Scott Ruthven narrowed the gap with a penalty, Hawks were soon in full flight and dominated the loose where Neil McKenzie and Jamie Murray had a splendid contest. Monaghan grabbed his second when Sitch charged off a five-metre scrum under the visitors' posts, and this time Strang nailed the extras for a 12-3 lead. Richard Higgins then almost garrotted Hawks' scrum-half Monaghan, leading to a melee that saw both the Rose prop and lock Steve Begley spend 10 minutes off the pitch, an offence that eventually led to a third try for the home side, Ally Maclay eschewing two men wide of him to do the hard work himself. Strang kicked that conversion and another just before the break, after big Steve Swindell breenged over from close range, profiting from Hawks' best-drilled move that saw quick lineout ball taken on at pace by the pack. That hoovered in defenders and was a move that transfixed the Melrose midfield all game. An excellent try from the restart by the composed Strang all but ended Rose's resistance, though their cause wasn't helped by losing their best player, flanker Murray, when he was clattered off the ball. After a lull, the impressive Colin Shaw crossed next, first standing up then running round Mark Robertson to dance his way over, then Maclay set up Steven Duffy for a try under the posts. Barry Watson grabbed a consolation try before Strang rounded off a fine performance with his second try in the dying minutes. Hawks C Shaw; K Baillie, A Maclay, S Duffy, S Low (Adamson 67); M Strang, I Monaghan (R McKnight 50); E Milligan, F Thomson, P Dalton (Mories 50), S Begley, G Perret, S Swindall, M Sitch, N McKenzie (Francis 50) Melrose S Ruthven; B Watson, J Murphy, K Kaufana, M Robertson; S Wight, S Shiel (C Thomson 38); R Higgins, W Mitchell, I Cornwall; G Dodds, J Bradburn, A Clark, R Miller, J Murray (Hikila 48). Subs: G Innes, C Robson Referee G Wilson (Strathclyde Police) Scorers. Hawks. Tries Monaghan (2) Maclay, Swindell, Strang (2), Shaw, Duffy Cons Strang (5) Melrose. Try Watson Pen Ruthven No team list has been added yet.

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