Hastings guides Warriors towards playoffs

Glasgow .......... 37 Cheetahs ........ 23

GLASGOW guaranteed themselves a PRO14 playoff place after sweeping aside the Toyota Cheetahs 37-23.

Warriors were without 19 players due to Six Nations duty and injury, but still managed to swat away a full-strength Cheetahs side on Friday evening.

“We’re really rapped with the result, we had good intensity and we defended well,” said Warriors coach Dave Rennie. “I thought Adam Hastings controlled the game; he put us in the corners and put a lot of pressure on a strong side. It was a good effort.”

After a length-of-the-field score after nine minutes from Malcolm Jaer, Glasgow controlled the rest of the contest with their usual boa constrictor style.

The Warriors victory, which at times looked close but was never in doubt, was a product of inspired kicking from Hastings and set-piece dominance.

Tries from Niko Matawalu, Ruaridh Jackson, and Hastings with a conversion and penalty, helped the Warriors into a 15-10 half-time lead before shifting gears after the break to put the game beyond their visitors.

Siosiua Halanukonuka, George Horne and Henry Pyrgos crossed over, with Hastings adding a further two conversions and a penalty to seal the victory.

Clayton Blommetjites added a try for Cheetahs with Neil Marias kicking the conversion and three penalties, but their frustration was encapsulated by Francois Venter’s last-gasp yellow card for obstruction.