“In general, I thought the number of line breaks and the attitude of the boys today was excellent,” said coach George Graham. “I’m proud of them. It takes a little pressure off us but we’re just at the beginning of our journey again.”
Gala can be encouraged by their set-piece play helped by the presence of the Edinburgh prop Alan Dell, whose two tries from driven line-outs gave the Maroons a 10-7 interval lead. Gala’s fifth try also came from this ploy, Josh Irvine finishing over the line when the music stopped.
Gala’s other tries were scored by full-back Graham Spiers and wing Frankie Robson, both scores involving the accomplished Dell. Only one of Gala’s tries was converted and, together with a missed penalty, 11 points were lost.
One upside was the exciting displays from their two 18-year-olds, stand-off Josh Henderson and No 8 Bruce Flockhart. Henderson capped his performance with a late try, the other Hawks’ touchdowns coming from Andy Linton and Pierre Mournal, who kicked two conversions.