Townsend says hero Finn is such a clever boy
GLASGOW WARRIORS head coach Gregor Townsend last night praised Finn Russell for the clever piece of skill which helped his side secure a vital derby-day win over Edinburgh at Murrayfield. The Scotland fly-half cheekily improvised when the ball rolled off his kicking tee as he lined up a penalty; deciding instead to pick it up, take a few steps forward and drop-kick it between the posts. Combined with tries from Junior Bulumakau, Josh Strauss and Alex Dunbar, it saw Glasgow return to winning ways in the Guinness Pro12 after three successive league defeats, and claim the first leg of the 1872 Cup, which is currently held by their capital rivals. ‘I’ve never seen that done before for a penalty but it showed how Finn has the confidence and
self-belief to try things,’ said Townsend after the 25-12 win. ‘To have the courage to do that was excellent to see, especially as he didn’t have his most perfect game, but he still put over three vital points for us in such an unusual way. ‘We showed a lot of patience out there,’ added Townsend. ‘I’m very pleased with the win. It has been a long time coming. ‘Our control in defence was very good. No one was flying out of line. ‘Then, when it came to Alex Dunbar’s try in the second half, it must have been preceded by around 30 phases. ‘That demands patience to get the breakthrough and, in the end, it also required a bit of skill.’ Edinburgh’s interim head coach Duncan Hodge said: ‘We had pressure and possession but couldn’t turn it into points. They scored a couple of tries and opened up a gap we couldn’t close.’