Still only 22, Scott has still to fulfil potential first spotted in a Scotland under-19 shirt partly due to shoulder damage that twice put him on the sidelines and was finally corrected by surgery.
But signs of progress were evident as 'Muir becam
e the first side in over 75 matches to prevent 'Sonians from notching at least one try.
By scoring four of their own including a 35-metre runaway effort from Scott the champions qualified for a bonus point but the icing on the cake was the performance of Scott who later remarked: "Keyhole surgery put me out for four months last season but I spent a lot of the summer in the gym and now I feel I'm getting the benefit in a team who are developing momentum.
"I also had a (chemistry) degree to complete but I feel today was a job well done."
By the reckoning of one 'Muir talwart, Scott is learning from playing alongside ex-pro Fergus Pringle at second row while it is also noticeable that the youngster has shed some bulk without detracting from his go-forward or line-out ability.
As for 'Muir coach Eamon John he believes Scott's emergence could not be more timely.
He said: "Greig has worked hard to come from the outside of our squad to fill a gap left by the retirement of Graham McCallum (ex-Edinburgh). A chance was there for Greig and he is taking it.
"As for his try he had a fair distance to go when the ball reached him but he made the line with two wingers chasing him.
"The really pleasing thing for me, though, is that he still has his best years ahead."
Watsonians, too, have their prodigies but this was a below par display from them, as coach Bruce Aitchison admitted: "We made too many mistakes, dropping balls and letting them back into the game. "They boxed clever. They're smart. They know how to disrupt and took their chances."
However, it was not all doom and gloom for Watsonians. In particular, Jamie Blackwood gave his all when flitting between centre and scrum-half due to injuries, notably to Alan Nash, which prompted re-shuffles.
"Jamie is a talented player who wants to play scrum-half but through circumstances has ended up starting at centre," said Aitchison.
"Having said that Eddie Howe was one of our better players at scrum half in a game where I didn't think there was much between the teams, although the scoreboard suggests otherwise.
"The mistakes were frustrating but we think they will be easily solved and time will tell."
In fact, while 'Sonians – who have no room for complacency – struggled in the swirling wind and rain, Boroughmuir built on their early confidence boost which came about when the outstanding Greg Cottrell carved open the home defence in only two minutes for winger Ed Mills to run a magnificent angle to the posts.
Elgan O'Donnell converted on the way to a 15-point individual haul.
"If Greig Scott's try was impressive then our opener was even more eye-catching," said John.
In reality, however, this was not the flash, exuberant Boroughmuir we have come to expect as the game became bogged down for long periods.
"We do enough entertaining and didn't need to this time. It was about turning up away from home and taking the bonus-point win.
"Conditions were difficult with the pitch greasy and plenty of wind, but there were quite a lot of penalties – some of them unnecessary, because they were to the team on the ball," said John in what amounted to the mildest of criticisms of officialdom following a match where both sides looked to be treading egg-shells at the breakdown.
Regardless of any refereeing inconsistencies, real or otherwise, there could be no doubt that the better side won, and John – while keeping his feet on the ground – was delighted.
He said: "Nothing is handed out this early in the season but we did our homework on Watsonians from a playing and coaching point of view and our tactics proved spot on.
"It was pleasing to get a bonus point but even more pleasing to keep them to no tries."
In doing so 'Muir lost Ed Mills and later Joni Hare to yellow cards which seemed at odds with the generally low key and static nature of proceedings, all Watsonians points coming from the boot of Mike Ker.
That made 'Muir's defensive wall all the more praiseworthy and there were times where serious questions were asked of them only for loose passing to come to their aid.
After Mills' early effort, Ker goaled two penalties to one by O'Donnell before proceedings lurched the visitors' way with Freddie Lait notching his second try in six matches – an impressive strike rate for a prop.
That left O'Donnell and Ker to continue their shoot-out before 'Muir turned 21-9 ahead. With Scott grabbing a loose ball in broken play for his touchdown, all that really remained was whether a bonus could be secured.
The answer was provided by Tom Bury off a beautifully timed pass from Olo Brown after the highly capable Ewan Matheson had pirated possession.
Adding to 'Muir's haul was the Allan McNish Trophy, at stake when the teams clash and named in memory of the Watsonians rugby legend and one-time Edinburgh district coach.
Scorers:
Watsonians: Penalties: Ker (3).
Boroughmuir: Tries: Mills, Lait, Scott, Bury; Cons: O'Donnell (3). Pens: O'Donnell (3).
Teams:Watsonians: Nash, Rowe, Minto, Blackwood, Saena, Ker, Howe, Fisher, Wood, Coertze, Callander (c), Tweed, Paulo, Pelter, Hills. Subs: Scott, Hart, Condell, Brown, Di Rollo.
Boroughmuir: Cottrell, Bury, Clapperton, O'Donnell, Mills, Cannon, Cusiter, Costigan, Ross, Lait, Scott, Pringle (c), Brown, Matheson, Martyn. Subs: Waddell, Hare, Malloy, Eseonu, Sievwright.
The full article contains 1018 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
