scotland on Sunday reports

Boroughmuir edged closer to BT Premiership safety with a dramatic win in a tense encounter – the second time this season they have edged out Hawks by a single point. And while league points were the main focus, the fixture also served as a dress rehearsal for the BT Cup semi-final at the same venue next month.

It was the visitors, with a stiff breeze at their backs, who made the better start. However, Chris Laidlaw failed with an early penalty attempt and it was Hawks who took the lead in 14 minutes through a penalty from Jack Steele. The home side had the better of the forward exchanges but Boroughmuir posed the bigger threat behind the scrum and took the lead in 19 minutes when Sep Visser freed Grant 
McConnell who darted in between the sticks. Laidlaw stroked over the conversion and extended his side’s lead with a penalty.

Steele booted another penalty and Hawks enjoyed a spell in the ascendancy. However, poor handling in the danger zone cost them points on several occasions. But they finally clicked with the final play of the half, a slick pass from Finlay Gillies finding Andy Kirkland in space and the lock completing the job, leaving Steele with a simple conversion to see Hawks into a 13-10 interval lead.

Another penalty from Steele eight minutes after the restart kept the scoreboard ticking over and he added a further three points as the home side continued to enjoy the bulk of the possession. However, Laidlaw notched another penalty on Boroughmuir’s next visit to home territory, bringing them back to within a converted score.

The visitors then enjoyed their best spell of the match but were repeatedly forced back by a solid Hawks defence, despite the home sided having Tom Steven then David Milne despatched to the sin bin. And just as it appeared that it was not to be Boroughmuir’s afternoon, after they had failed to score in 20 minutes of unrelenting pressure, the visitors finally found a way through when Iain Moody slipped down the blindside following a close range lineout with three minutes left to play. And Laidlaw snatched the victory when he hammered over the touchline conversion.