A triumphant day for Ayr in which they moved back to the top of the BT Premiership table, but you can’t help feeling slightly sorry for them given that the main talking point from Saturday’s 39-13 demolition of high-flying Glasgow Hawks at Millbrae was the red card shown to visiting centre Brendan McGroarty early in the second half for what was deemed to be a dangerous tackle on home lock Scott Sutherland.

That decision killed the game as a contest, but should not be allowed to detract from the excellence Ayr had already exhibited in neutralising their opponents’ free-flowing attacking game which had stupefied all previous challengers during the last month.

Having fallen 17-3 behind thanks to touchdowns from back-rowers Blair Macpherson and George Hunter, Hawks had scrambled their way back into the match with a brace of tries from lock Andy Kirkland and flanker Grant Stewart either side of half-time to make it 17-13.

However, Ayr remained marginal favourites even before McGroarty was given his marching orders, not least because of their near complete domination of the scrum.

The way the hosts kept their focus to secure an emphatic victory, whilst also giving valuable game time to some emerging talent at the club, spoke of the levels of professionalism that head coach Calum Forrester and his staff have instilled in the team.

Macpherson grabbed two more tries to secure his hat-trick, while full-back Grant Anderson and number eight Ruaridh Mackenzie (who has just arrived in this country from New Zealand on a partnership contract with Glasgow Warriors) also got in on the act.

“For me, the pleasing thing was that everything we highlighted about Hawks and ourselves after last week’s game versus Stirling, and everything we worked on during training, was played out in the game. We tightened up our defence and our set-piece was a real focus for us,” said Forrester.

Ayr were missing the influential pairing of stand-off Frazier Climo and centre Danny McCluskey due to minor injuries, while club captain Pete McCallum is a longer term absentee, but these set-backs have not been allowed to disrupt the team’s forward momentum. In fact, it has been viewed as an exciting opportunity to increase strength in depth within the squad.

“We are very fortunate to have a number of outstandingly talented players at the club so when we lose a guy like Frazier then we can turn to Ross [Curle] and ask him to move into stand-off, and also have somebody like Archie Russell [younger brother of Finn], who was outstanding during the first three or four games of the season, come straight back from injury in to the centre,” explained Forrester.

“I’d particularly like to highlight that in the last 25 minutes Ross came off, which meant our stand-off, Paddy Dewhirst, and our inside centre, Stafford McDowell, were both 18-years-old. Even Archie at outside centre is only 21,” he continued.

“Paddy is somebody we would have liked to have involved earlier in the season but he has been injured. In the last couple of weeks he has been man-of-the-match for the 2nd XV so he thoroughly deserved his opportunity, and he took it with both hands.”

“Other guys like Will Bordill and George Hunter are only 23 and 24 [respectively], but they are now leaders in our team in terms of how things operate at training and on game day, so it is pleasing to see them take on more responsibility when a few senior guys are missing.”

Ayr have now defeated their two main rivals for top spot in the BT Premiership at Millbrae, but their record does have a blemish on it after a slip-up away to Boroughmuir a fortnight ago, and that is not the only time their form has dropped off against lesser fancied opponents, with Gala and Stirling County both giving them a run for their money at Millbrae this season.

The key to winning a league is consistency, and Forrester says his players are under no illusions about the importance of keeping their focus for every match, regardless of their opponents’ reputation.

“There are hopefully a few big games left this season but we know that the only way we can get to where we want to be is to keep performing week to week,” he said.

“Boroughmuir was one of those days when nothing went our way whereas today we had a bit more rub of the green, although we put ourselves in a position to have some luck with the way we defended and our set-piece,” he added.

For Hawks, it was a bitter pill to swallow after a rampant month in which they have swatted aside all-comers. Their focus now must be on ensuring that they do not let this disappointment define their attitude as they move forward. They host a talented young Currie side next week who may have finally discovered their mojo with a 36-10 victory over Boroughmuir.

Ayr head off to Myreside to take on Watsonians, who have now lost three on the bounce after Saturday’s 21-19 reversal to Stirling County. Elsewhere, Gala managed a 22-21 home victory over Hawick, while last season’s champions Heriot’s climbed into the top four with 17-21 win at Melrose.