Comeback win caps perfect 10
Glasgow warriors secured a perfect ten last night as they brushed aside the challenge of 14-man Cardiff Blues at scotstoun.
The welsh side were down a man for 51 minutes after tighthead prop Taufa’ao Filise was red carded for a shoulder to the head of warriors’ hooker george Turner.
and the undefeated hosts took full advantage to get the six-try victory and stay well out on top of the Pro14’s Conference a. The home side were going for their 10th win in a row, but it was the visitors who carved out a 10-0 lead in the opening stages.
opposition stand-off Jarrod Evans kicked a straightforward penalty in the first minute and then a flowing team move and a nice wide pass to second-row Macauley Cook saw him go over in the left corner.
Evans nudged over a good conversion and the warriors were shell-shocked to be 10 points down so early. They looked to hit back quickly, but by the time the first quarter was coming to an end, they were still scoreless due to a number of handling errors.
If it all seemed a little forced at that time, what came next was a thing of beauty that warmed up the crowd on a bitterly cold night.
a perfectly hit cross-field kick by stand-off Pete Horne landed straight in the arms of centre sam Johnson and the australian did the rest, brushing off a couple of tackles to score the try. Horne converted and it was 10-7. The Blues extended their lead to six points soon after, though, Evans kicking a long-range penalty to make it 13-7.
The hosts then suffered a blow when hooker Turner was forced off with a head knock to be replaced by James Malcolm in the 29th minute. However, they were soon a man to the good when referee Nigel owens and the TMo took a look at the incident that had forced Turner off.
after much deliberation Blues’ tighthead prop Filise, who at 40 is the oldest player in the guinness Pro14, was red-carded for connecting with Turner’s head with his shoulder.
It may have been harsh, but the warriors took advantage straight away just as scotland had done with an extra man against australia six days before.
The ball was spun out wide in the 31st minute and after skipper Callum gibbins went close, centre alex Dunbar went over. Horne converted to make it 14-13. That was the way it stayed until the break but the warriors were on the front foot, although they did lose back-row Matt smith to a head knock.
The Blues clearly felt hard done by because the 14 men got the first points of the second half on the board. They came in the form of a penalty in the 47th minute from Evans, but 120 seconds later glasgow nearly had a try themselves.
Replacement samu Vunisa went close, but the TMo denied him before Blues’ back-row olly Robinson was yellow-carded for killing the ball. That incident took place five metres from the visiting line and from the next phase warriors claimed the third try.
with energetic replacements george Horne and Niko Matawalu now on, full-back Ruaridh Jackson slid in at the corner and Horne senior kept up his great night with the boot to make it 21-16.
The warriors’ fans in the East stand were chanting about a bonus-point try being needed and that was to become the side’s mission for the final 20 minutes. It took another seven minutes for a try to come but, really, it was only a matter of time.
second-row scott Cummings edged very close to the try line, but eventually it was Vunisa, the 29-year-old Italian international, going over on his home debut.
Horne converted and it was job done for the warriors who will be pleased with wins over the ospreys and the Blues with a number of players missing.
The icing on the cake came when replacement adam Hastings’ kick through was dabbed down in the dead ball area by winger leonardo sarto for the fifth try in the 78th minute and then Matawalu’s great individual effort to finish things. SCORERS: GLASGOW — Tries: Johnson, Dunbar, Jackson, Vunisa, Sarto, Matawalu. CON: P Horne 5.
CARDIFF BLUES: Try — Cook. Pens:
Evans 3. Con: Evans. Referee: Nigel Owens. Attendance: 7, 351.