Edinburgh Academicals.....20 Glasgow Hawks.....5

This will be a soul searching week for both Edinburgh Academicals and Glasgow Hawks, whose meeting at Raeburn Place in the League Trophy was sorely disfigured by an act of violence that rugby simply does not need.

A punch thrown by a Hawks player left Academicals' young centre, Craig Murray, a player of considerable promise, with a deep gash above an eye - it required 13 stitches - and a horribly distorted face. Murray is now likely to be out of the game for a couple of months.

The incident, near the end of the first half, was not seen by match referee Murray Richardson, a situation for which one can hardly blame him. Referees would require 360 degree vision to spot every miscreant action on the field.

As a consequence, no player was penalised by the referee, but Hawks captain Walter Malcolm was spoken to shortly afterwards. The problem in the League Trophy is that there are no neutral touch judges, who are, in most cases of foul play, the policing eyes.

This incident, however, was seen by a number of spectators, standing close to the touchline, and it is the evidence from these witnesses that Academicals will use should they exercise their right to cite a player. Academicals have seven days to do so, but on Saturday night Roger Whittaker, the recently appointed director of coaching at Raeburn Place, said: ''Emotions were running high and so we decided to dicuss the matter in the cold light of day.

''We have seven days in which to decide what to do and we will meet midweek to consider our course of action.''

Whatever they do, it would seem unlikely that Academicals would not reflect on the fact that they themselves paid heavily for a similar incident of violence. That, it will be recalled, involved loosehead prop Jason Fayers, who received a four-year ban (subsequently reduced on appeal), from the Scottish Rugby Union after a similar 'shocker' in a league match against Kelso that resulted in Borderers hooker Craig Halliday suffering a double fracture of his jaw.

Ironically, given the unfortunate non-sighting of the punch and the consequent lack of blame apportionment, Academicals suffered a sin-bin penalty awarded against them for repeated killing of the ball.

So, having lost their young midfield player, they were then further weakened by having a sin-bin nominee - Duncan Wilson - depart for a 10-minute period.

Arguably, that may have cost Academicals a four-try bonus point.

A storming run by their powerful prop, JJ Van Der Esch, and then a typical dart from the base of the scrum by Kevin Troup produced two first half scores.

In the second half, hooker Lionel Andreou, one of three South Africans on show in the Edinburgh side, rounded off a clever move round the front of a line-out to score Academicals' third.

It seemed that the fourth try had been scored when Academicals engineered a dymanic maul that ended with lock Tyrone Hughes grounding the ball over the Hawks line.

However, the 'try' was disallowed, referee Richardson ruling that there had been a player in front of the ball-carrier.

A correct decision, of course, but a point of rugby law that should be applied equally strictly on the international stage.

In truth, Academicals were worth four tries.

Their forwards were much more efficient, notably in the line-out, where the return of Malcolm McVie had a significant impact.

The Edinburgh side also showed the value of a quick- striking hooker in the new era of straight put-ins - Andreou taking three against the head - and of having solid defenders Jim Whittaker and Craig Harrison, in the back row.

For their part, Hawks dis-appointed with a game that never really threated the Edinburgh side's defence. Calum MacGregor, returning to the side after, a short absence, managed to prise some rugby out of his pacy threquarters in the closing stages of the game, but by then Academicals already had the points in the bank.

It was MacGregor's break that produced Hawks' only try, scored by lock forward Charles Afuakwah, supporting his stand-off's break.

Hawks, with the return of their Glasgow players, will be a different force in the Tennent's championship, but for them the League Trophy has perhaps exposed gaps in reserve strength.

On Saturday it also exposed a serious lapse of discipline that they will surely want to sort out after an internal inquiry.

Scorers: Edinburgh Academicals - Van Der Esch 1t, Troup 1t, Andreou 1t, Stent 1p,1c. Glasgow Hawks - Afuakwah 1t.

Edinburgh Academicals - B Easson; R Porter, C Murray, C Ray, N Hanna; I Stent, K Troup; JJ Van Der Esch, L Andreou, D Graham, M McVie, T Hughes, C Harrison, J Whittaker, D Wilson. Substitute - A Dow for Murray 38 mins.

Glasgow Hawks - T Mathewson; G Hawkes, D Ablett, D Wilson, A Common; C MacGregor, S Simmers; A Perrie, A Mason, M Blackie, C Afuakwah, S Hutton, S Winter, W Malcolm, J Richmond. Substitutes - J Hart for Ablett 49 mins, N Adam for Hutton 52 mins.

Referee - M Richardson (Gala Star).