Hawick take their time but superiority tells in the end

Hawick continued their winning formula and rattled up the scoring charts with a comprehensive win over Edinburgh Accies on Saturday at Mansfield Park in a one-side contest which should have been put to bed long before it was, such was the home side’s dominance.

It was Hawick’s seventh league success on the trot – and their second 33-0 win this season – to sustain a challenge for one of the play-off positions.

The fact Hawick were unable to cash in on a bonus point until the second half, after leading 7-0 at the interval, was down to a lack of clinical finishing but Accies tired under such pressure that the inevitable was only delayed, despite anxiety at times on the touchline.

Overall, it was a dominating performance that augurs well for the business end of the season.

Coach George Graham’s only criticism was that it took so long to secure every point.

“We played a lot better in the second half but we cannot afford to wait until then,” he said. “However, I am happy with the performance

and we defended very well when we had to.

“We dominated up front from one to eight but the backs could have been a lot more direct.”

The coach would be equally delighted with the defence, which denied Accies in its best spell early in the second half, and a

blank score-line again was a tribute to the defensive training.

Accies found it impossible to create a defensive breach and even failed with a Callum Ramm penalty.

The game had two yellow cards – Accies captain Jamie Sole in the first half and Hawick’s Daniel Suddon in the second. But, overall, it was the quality of the all-round home play that determined the outcome.

Accies coach Iain Berthinussen conceded that Hawick deserved to be further ahead at half-time.

“We had three opportunities on their line in the second half but we were not accurate enough and we did not take them. We just could not built up

the pressure,” he said.

The forwards laid the foundation with two Shawn Muir tries, one in each half, from driven play. Logan Gordon Wooley, Andrew Mitchell and Mully Bannerman ensured the backs had their say, with three conversions from Ali Weir and one by Kirk Ford.

Hawick: K. Ford; L. Ferguson, W. Griebenow, A. Mitchell, L. Gordon-Wooley; A. Weir, G. Welsh; S Muir, M. Carryer, C. Bachurzewski, S. Fairbairn, D. Suddon, J. Linton, B. McNeil, S. Graham. Replacements: C. Renwick, D. Johnston, A. Piotrowski, B. Donaldson, M. Bannerman.