Hawick Royal Albert celebrating three wins on bounce in all competitions

Albert’s 2-1 win at Dalkeith Thistle on Saturday was the first time manager Kenny Aitchison’s side have picked up all three points in the EoSFL’s second division this season but their third victory on the trot in all competitions.

It follows a 5-4 penalty shootout success away to Ormiston Primrose after ending extra time goalless in the King Cup’s second round seven days earlier and a 4-2 home win against Vale of Leithen last Wednesday night in the East of Scotland League Cup’s first round.

Albert are now second bottom of the league and nine points from safety, with eight points from 20 fixtures, having been replaced at the foot of the table by Syngenta following their resignation from the East of Scotland Football Association.

Brandon Blair put Albert in front two minutes into Saturday’s match in Midlothian and Harry Fowler scored their winner on 24 minutes after their fourth-placed hosts’ Darren Leslie netted a 16th-minute equaliser from the penalty spot.

Fowler was also among their scorers three days earlier against EoSFL premier division basement side Vale of Leithen at Albert Park, netting twice, on 63 minutes and 66, with David Scholtes and Jack Gammie on target too, on 12 and 17 minutes respectively, and Dylan Weldon and Barry Hogg netting for their Innerleithen opposition, on seven minutes and 75.

Midfielder Greg Ford is chuffed to bits to about Albert notching up a hat-trick of successive successes, telling the club’s Facebook page: “Our tails are up big time now after three wins in a row, so hopefully we can kick on from that.”

New goalkeeper Derek Polowyj is also hopeful that the Royalists can build on the confidence instilled by their current winning streak to enginner an escape from the relegation zone, adding: “I think the boys’ confidence is absolutely sky high and all we can do from now is go up. We’ve got nothing to lose.

“Folk are coming to play us thinking they’re going to walk all over us but we’ve shown we’ve got heart and desire. We just need to get wins in the league.”

Albert’s last back-to-back wins prior to this month also included one against Dalkeith, by 6-2 at home in the old EoSFL first division conference B in August 2019, following on from a 3-1 win at Arniston Rangers, also in the league, three days earlier.

Next up for Albert is their fifth road trip in six games. They’re at Edinburgh’s Heriot-Watt University this coming Saturday, with kick-off at 3pm, and their hosts, third in the table at the moment on 47 points from 23 games, will be looking to do the double against them, having won the reverse fixture in the Borders back in August by 4-0.