Boroughmuir 6-32 Melrose: Borderers see off challenge with real style

• Catch me if you can: Melrose's loosehead prop, Nick Beavon, breaks clear of the Boroughmuir cover. Photograph: Kate Chandler

From the kick-off to the last score, an outrageous try of the match by a prop who dummied three tacklers to scuttle over from 30 yards, Melrose held this contest in a vice-like grip that an experienced Boroughmuir side seemed unable to weaken at any stage. Clinical, controlled and deeply impressive, league leaders Melrose managed to transform a potential banana skin of a match into an anti-climactic non-event that was over as a contest long before the final whistle. On this sort of form, it's difficult to see anybody overhauling the men from the Greenyards.

Most impressive of all was skipper Scott Wight, whose canny handling of this game was a joy to behold. Not only were the stand-off's options virtually faultless, but his boot was almost unfailingly accurate. Only two conversions from out wide and one long penalty that came back off the post went begging, but his five penalties kept the scoreboard ticking over and turned the screw on a Boroughmuir side which looked curiously unsure of how to counter Melrose's tidy forward work and purposeful running out wide.

Melrose's ascendancy was established early as they attacked with a relish and directness that Muir struggled to match. No.8 Graeme Dodds was particularly conspicuous in the opening salvo of forward drives, but equally impressive was the quiet efficiency of openside Grant Runciman, who recycled the ball with a minimum of fuss that reminded older spectators of his dad George.

Although Boroughmuir played a full part for most of the match, Wight's determination to ensure Melrose played in the Boroughmuir half, coupled with his forwards' grinding intensity, meant that the penalties were always going to come.

The first arrived after three minutes, although Wight's kick was cancelled out by Boroughmuir's Ally Warnock a couple of minutes later. The home side had no riposte to Fraser Thompson on 20 minutes, however, as the peroxided Melrose fullback cut in off the left wing to charge through two tackles for the first try..

After Warnock and Wight exchanged two more penalties just before half-time to make the score 11-6 at the interval, it looked like a fairly equal contest. Yet the opening minutes of the second half, in which the greater tempo of Melrose's first-half play began to show in Boroughmuir's tired legs, left no doubt who would win this match. Wight slotted over a penalty within seconds of the restart after Boroughmuir second row Greig Scott dived over the top at a ruck, and the only surprise was that Melrose didn't extend their lead more significantly.

That was due, in part, to centre Dave McCall, who was put free by a fantastic run by Callum Anderson, but, instead of simply outflanking the cover to touch down in the corner, tried to cut inside the onrushing defenders. He managed to get over the line, but Boroughmuir scrum-half Sam Johnson did sterling work, wrapping up the Glasgow pro and flipping him on to his back so he was unable to ground the ball.

Breaking inside when in possession of a try-scoring overlap was an affliction for both sides, but proved particularly ruinous for Boroughmuir, who spurned several half-chances. Melrose relied on a steady aggregation of points, Wight kicking another two penalties in quick succession midway through the second half to open up a 20-6 lead.

Then, with the game won and the points assured, Melrose went in search of the bonus point and fashioned two superb tries. The first came from Wight, who started the move by kicking out of defence on his own line. Melrose recovered the ball thanks to a sympathetic bounce, and quickly spun it left, with John Dalziel and Dodds heavily involved in some glorious interpassing that ended with Wight going over for a superb length-of-the-pitch score.

As if that wasn't good enough, Melrose's forwards rubbed Borougmuir's face in it, loosehead prop Nick Beavon finishing off a series of glory-hunting forward drives by the tight five by shimmying past three defenders and accelerating away for a 30-yard try that rightly brought the house down.

Scorers: Boroughmuir: Pens: Warnock (2). Melrose: Tries: Thomson, Wight, Beavon. Conv: Wight. Pens: Wight (5).

Boroughmuir: H Jones; T Bury, M Clapperton (capt), S Wilson, J Webster; A Warnock, S Johnson; N Fraser, S Crombie, J Gilding, G Scott, A Davidson, D O'Riordan, N Roger, J Doubleday.

Melrose: F Thomson; C Anderson, J Murray, J Helps, D McCall; S Wight (capt), R Chrystie; N Beavon, W Mitchell, G Holborn, G Elder, R Miller, J Dalziel, G Runciman, G Dodds,

Referee: G Knox.