PERHAPS it was seeing Watsonians rack up the points last night, perhaps it was conceding first and being under the cosh, but whatever it was motivating Ayr today worked wonders as they produced an all-round display of ruthless rugby.

Accies had taken a surprise early lead after George Davis had pilfered the ball at the back of an Ayr maul and charged 50 metres downfield. Then a sliding take and quick offload from Struan Wells sent Accies clear down their right flank, and Connor Allan took the final pass to go over.

Robbie Kent's opportunistic 50-22 handed Accies prime field position shortly after the restart, but soon after came the momentum killer: a spilled ball in midfield, and the last person you want to see picking up the ball with swathes of open field in front of him is Luca Bardelli. Once he gathered, there was no stopping him, and subsequently, Ayr.

"It was a really good start,” said Accies coach Iain Berthinussen, whose team remain third bottom but are now n even graver danger of relegation. “We came out with intent and doing what was planned, we pushed Ayr back into their own half. We stretched them, we got a really nice try, then we get another opportunity – we maybe over-complicate it – and they go the length.

"Ayr are a really good side, they're clinical, and the reality is, they're a completely different level to where we are at the moment, but I'm proud of the boys that wanted to come through here. We showed glimpses of what we can do but it just wasn't consistent enough."

While Ayr chased down Watsonians’ total of last night, Alex McGuire unfortunately rivalled only Luke Crosbie. The Ayr hooker lasted mere seconds before James Malcolm came on, and it was he who grabbed Ayr's next two scores after attacking lineouts.

The next two tries were also off set-pieces, this time of the scrum variety, and both finished in Ayr's right-hand corner. Tom Lanni claimed the first, and young full-back Scott Watson timed his run into the line perfectly for his, having the momentum and enough gas to get round last man Max Wallace. Watson was unable to convert those last two opportunities, but the score had stretched out to 31-7.

Accies' captain Struan Whittaker tried to get his side back into the game, ripping the ball from an Ayr hand in their own 22, and they then won a penalty which went to the corner. However, they overthrew it, and instead Ayr got themselves another try before the end of the first half, showing them how it's done when Robbie Orr breezed through the biggest of defensive gaps after a line-out.

Ayr weren't for relenting. Adam McGowan showed a lovely step and good pace to score in the left corner early doors in the second half, and was on the scoresheet again after some lovely interplay between Ryan Sweeney and Malcolm.
Sometimes your luck's just not in, and when you're facing the best side in the league, you don't need them to be getting all of it, but so it continued.

Bobby Beattie tried a cross-kick in his own 22 which Bardelli spilled. Wells and Wallace were quickly onto it for Accies until Orr clattered Wallace to the ground. Accies went from left to right, probing for the hole, until all of a sudden Orr – who had completed that tackle on Wallace on Accies' left-flank – had the ball in his hand and raced all the way down the touchline for another.

Ayr made a raft of changes after that one to slow the scoring rate, replacement tight-head Cameron Bain pulling one back for Accies, but there was another four-hit combo to come.

With the Ayr forwards looking to crash over from close range, they went to the backs for Lanni to claim his second, and his hat-trick was completed in double-quick time, Jamie Shedden manhandling opponents on his way into the 22, before Bardelli gave his opposite wing team-mate the final scoring pass.

Malcolm decided he wanted in on the hat-trick action too, after Sweeney had counter-rucked effectively and Jamie Drummond had carried hard, and then, just after I had decided who "Player of the Match" was going to be, Sweeney ploughed over from 5m.

"I was concerned that we'd maybe have a bit of a hangover from last week (26-19 away victory to closest challengers Heriot's),” Ayr coach Grant Anderson said. “The boys really enjoyed last week, the intensity, the physicality, and obviously to get the win – so I just wanted to make sure we got a performance.

"The boys have got a week off next week, so I was pleased with the intensity, in patches. It was a bit of a slow start. I think the pitch maybe fed into that – it's quite heavy – and we've been training on the 4G this week, but I'm happy enough.