Townsend admits his men have a lot to learn

GLASGOW WARRIORS head coach Gregor Townsend admits his side have a lot to learn before they can seriously challenge the big guns for the European Champions Cup. The Warriors were outmuscled and outclassed by reigning European champions Saracens in yesterday’s quarter-final at Allianz Park and Townsend admits his side failed to deliver in front of their 6,000 travelling fans. ‘Getting into our seats two minutes before kick-off and seeing all the support was something special,’ said Townsend, who is leaving his post in the summer to replace Vern Cotter as Scotland head coach. ‘It shows how far the club has come in the last couple of years, but today also shows how much more work has to be done to take the next step. ‘It’s disappointing we didn’t make it through but we were beaten by the better team. ‘It was a huge effort to get here, not just this

season but over the course of the last three years — but we just didn’t deliver today. It’s tough to take when you really want to see your team play its best and it doesn’t happen. ‘To get through to the last eight was an achievement, but to get to the last four or the final of this tournament you need to be at your very best because you are against the best teams in Europe and we are not there yet. ‘The players will take it on next season. If they get games like that again, they will be a better team. A lot of those players have had another taste of what it’s like to play at the highest level of our game and we will learn from this.’ Townsend admitted his team lost the vital physical battle against a strong Saracens side that outmuscled them from the first minute. Co-captain Jonny Gray and influential centre Peter Horne both had to go off injured while Alex Dunbar only returned to play after a head-injury assessment. ‘Saracens did a number of things very well, with their level of physicality probably being the main one,’ said the Warriors head coach. ‘They were trying to hold us up and they did that effectively early on and physically they were tough to play against.’ Townsend admitted losing Gray with a head injury after just 14 minutes was a huge setback but felt it probably did not make any difference to the final score. ‘Losing him was a blow but who knows what would have happened as Saracens were clearly the better side today,’ said Townsend. Glasgow co-captain Henry Pyrgos, who had to take on the full responsibility when Gray went off injured, admitted his team were second best. ‘Saracens controlled most of the game and put us under a lot of pressure and were a really physical side,’ said the Warriors scrum-half. ‘We showed character by staying in the game for 60 minutes but they kept on top of us for most of the game. ‘We are out but, as Gregor says, there’s a lot we can learn from this.’