Having hit the halfway mark with a 5-2 home win over Whitburn Juniors, Haddington Athletic began the second half of their South Division campaign with an away fixture at strugglers Harthill Royal – the formbook suggested an away win was near inevitable but Millfield boss Johnny Harvey ensured his players were fully focused on their task.

Only a few years ago Harthill were always a competitive outfit but they’ve suffered an alarming decline in fortunes and haven’t had their troubles to seek either on or off the field, culminating in their failing to fulfil fixtures on two occasions earlier this season. Haddington have inflicted regular whippings; indeed they’d scored 34 goals against their hosts over their five previous meetings. Harvey named an unchanged XI for a third straight week.

The visitors created their first chance barely a minute after kick-off, but it was Harthill who had the ball in the net just five minutes in – fortunately for Haddington, scorer Heron was deemed offside. Andrew Sinclair looked to have scored at the other end three minutes later but the referee had already blown his whistle to signal a foul.

Joe Murray hit the crossbar with a free-kick from 25 yards and the Hi Hi were to come close on a number of occasions during a slightly frustrating first half – Scott Wright, Sinclair and Murray all had opportunities but were either thwarted by resilient home defending or narrowly missed the target.

A rare Harthill chance saw Heron come close with a shot on the turn but for the most part the visitors were on top. Young Royal keeper Cross did well to deny Murray on the half-hour, keeping him out at close range after a strong Mark Smith run down the left, and saved well again from Arran Ponton three minutes later.

Patience was key for Haddington players and eventually the opener came with five minutes left in the first half when Murray headed in at the back post from Wright’s inviting cross. A minute or so later, Harthill’s Mackay was red-carded for lifting his hands to Sinclair during an off the ball spat, reducing his team’s unfavourable prospects further.

Paul Tansey came close to his first Haddington goal before the break, but smashed his shot off the face of the crossbar and so Murray’s goal was all that separated the teams at the half.

In the eighth minute of the second half, Harthill came close to levelling when a ball across the face of goal narrowly eluded an incoming striker, but their luck was out and they found themselves two goals behind moments later. A Tansey corner was only part-cleared, falling finally to Wright on the left of the penalty area, who deftly stuck the ball past Cross for his third goal in three games.

Cross did well to stop a Tansey effort from twenty five yards shortly afterwards, but he couldn’t deny Murray a third Haddington goal when the Hi Hi striker was too strong for him in a one-on-one. With 63 minutes gone it was 4-0 when sub Kenny McMillan claimed his first goal for the club, just four minutes after coming on – Ponton was the provider.

With 20 minutes left, Tansey also scored his first Haddington goal, hammering the ball with power after McMillan delivered from the right. A slack moment at the back 13 minutes from time allowed Wade a consolation goal for Harthill, heading in from a corner – by now they were down to nine men after McCarthy received a second booking.

Within two minutes, Tansey made it 6-1, McMillan added a seventh with three minutes to play and, with virtually the last kick of the ball, Murray completed his first Haddington hat-trick.

A far sterner task than faces the Hi Hi on Saturday, when they meet derby rivals Dunbar United at their New Countess Park home. These games are generally close and, with much at stake this time, it’s likely this will again be the case.