Hawick Royal Albert United still waiting for first win of season

The Borderers lost 2-1 to Edinburgh South in their first home game of the current campaign last night, July 21.

New signing Hagen Steele got the hosts’ only goal at Albert Park, putting them ahead from the penalty spot in the 34th minute after slotting a low ball to visiting goalkeeper Ryan Taylor’s right.

That spot kick was awarded after a floated ball into the capital side’s box bounced up and hit left-back Jordan Daly’s hand.

South got back on level terms with 14 minutes of normal time to go after midfielder Josh Sharkey pounced on a second ball into the box from a corner and headed it into the hosts’ net.

Seven minutes later, Hawick had a penalty awarded against them after one of the visitors’ trialists was brought down in the box. Captain Jim Young was on target from the spot, claiming all three points for his team.

A second defeat on the trot it might have been for the Teries but there was only one goal in it and they’d got within seven minutes of the 90 of picking up a point, a far cry from the 9-1 thumping inflicted on them by Glenrothes four days earlier.

That battering could be put down to pre-season upheaval as new manager Jordan Gracie had only had one game to prepare for their East of Scotland Football League first division conference B opener against the Fifers on Saturday, July 17, that warm-up being a 2-1 friendly defeat by Civil Service Strollers’ under-20s a week earlier.

On top of that, Gracie, appointed as Geo Shepherd’s replacement at the end of June following his predecessor’s exit in May, was still assembling his squad for the current campaign just days before, having only signed up Jordan Nuttall, Kieran Murphy and Sean Solley last week.

It didn’t help either that the Borderers had Joe Ngoa sent off just 25 minutes into the game for a late challenge, five minutes after making their sole contribution to the scoreline.

The score was 2-1 to the hosts at that point, with the result still in the balance, but the floodgates opened thereafter.

Graeme Walker hit a hat-trick for the hosts, with Fionn McLeod Kay, Ryan McInness, Lea Schiavone, Dylan Honeyman, Kyle Bell and co-player-manager John Martin all getting one each.

It wasn’t the return to action Hawick would have been hoping for after seven months out, their last previous competitive game being a 5-1 defeat away to Perth and Kinross side Kinnoull on December 19 last year.

Kinnoull, as it happens, are next up as they’re due to pay a visit to Albert Park this Saturday at 2.30pm.

That will be followed by a trip up to Fife next Wednesday, July 28, to play Burntisland Shipyard, with a 7.30pm kick-off.