Broughton made it 2 out of 2 with what can only be described as an unconvincing 28-10 win over Portobello at Wardie on Saturday.

Paul Arnold stood in for virus sufferer Olly Maddocks and it was Arnold who stole the show, scoring 18 of the points on a day where Broughton should have maximised the bonus point which would have put them joint top. 

With our Antipodean contingent heading over to France for the World Cup in France, there were a couple of changes in the Broughton line-up with Paul Tyson coming in at second-row and a pack reshuffle which saw McFarlane moving to No.8.

Broughton, for the second week in a row started the match playing up the Wardie slope and early home pressure saw Porty camped in their own 22.  The seasiders managed to keep the Broughton pack away from their line, however in the 13th minute, the Broughton rolling maul was collapsed en-route to the posts and Arnold's 30 metre kick gave Broughton an early 3-0 lead.

The lead lasted only 5 minutes when the match official penalising a Broughton player for tackling without his opponent actually having the ball.  Porty's penalty-kicking prop Connor McLeod slotted the ball between the sticks to level the score. 3-3.

This seemed to encourage the visitors and when the Porty pack had the chance to capitalise on their hard work, they lost a scrum on the Broughton 22.

Arnold restored Broughton's lead on the half hour with another penalty from 15 metres out.  A Porty hand at the base of the ruck, and not for the first time during the game, was clearly spotted by the ref. 6-3.

Smith was penalised in the 33rd minute for allegedly coming in from the side at a Porty maul.  Despite stripping and winning possession, the match official deemed it to have been earned illegally.  McLeod's 30 metre attempt was pulled wide of the posts and Arnold's 22 restart soared all the way up to the Porty full back who pulled his kick under no apparent pressure.

From the resultant line-out, the Broughton pack went on a mission and when the ball was distributed by Arrandale at the back, Arnold jinked his way towards the posts from the 22.  Despite the attentions of two tacklers, Arnold twisted his way over the line for the opening try of the day.  The Ulsterman converted his own try and at half-time, the score was 13-3.

Broughton came out of the traps smartly at the start of the second half and the kick off caused all sorts of problems for the Porty receiver and he was bundled into touch.  From the line-out, Tyson secured the ball but once again the Portobello pack struggled to contain the rampant Broughton forwards and once again the maul was collapsed. 

Arnold's attempt at the extras was short however the Porty full-back was in an apparent day-dream and momentarily lost his train of thought and Fragne was on top of him immediately and ripped the ball from his grasp to score his first competitive try for Broughton.  Arnold converted this time to give Broughton a 20-3 lead.

The Porty prop had the chance to reduce the deficit with 50 minutes gone when Broughton were caught offside on their 22.  The kick spectacularly hit off the left post before heading right to hit off the opposite upright and bounced away for Arnold to clear.

O'Neill appeared to be in need of medical attention shortly afterwards and it was Captain Wells who popped Demon's shoulder back in place.  Normally that would resign you to the changing rooms for an early shower.   Not for the talismanic stonemason!  Straight back into action and it wasn't long before he was orchestrating the band that produced Broughton's next hit.

Fragne produced a speculative kick through which resulted in a Porty 22 restart.  Such was Porty's luck in the kicking stakes that the ball went in a crescent and arrived back in the 22!  Scrum time to Broughton and when it was perhaps an opportunity to allow the pack to show their dominance once again, Arnold produced a Tiger Woods style wedge shot from almost under the posts to grap himself a drop goal.  23-3.

Shortly afterwards Dickson had a clear opportunity to set up a scoring chance from inside his own 22, but with a two man overlap the former Currie man decided to go along and was suitably stopped in his tracks.

Head Coach Graham Bonner introduced Beaton for Lenihan and Cox for O'Neill with 10 minutes to go.

Porty got their only try of the game from the restart line-out when the No.13 was put into space and Arrandale's missed tackle allowed the Centre to easily go under the posts.  McLeod converted.  23-10 and a bit of belief on the Porty sidelines that a bonus point could be in the offering.

Sadly it wasn't to be and it was the home side who finished the game on a high.  A Broughton penalty 5 metres out in the final minute saw Arrandale take a quick tap and Nicolson took his pass in his stride to bundle over for a try.  Arnold hit the post with the conversion. 28-10.

So, back to back wins at Fortress Wardie, perhaps disappointing to not gain a 4th try to secure a bonus point but with 2 games gone, third place in the table just a single point behind both Hawick teams, things are coming along nicely.