Jones rediscovers his electric form to provide the vital spark in derby win

DAVE RENNIE spoke very highly of Huw Jones in the build-up to this 1872 Cup clash, lavishing praise on the enigmatic centre — now we know why.

The inclusion of Jones was probably the surest sign yet that he has regained the trust of his head coach after falling out of favour earlier in the season.

Safe to say, he repaid Rennie handsomely. Jones was really solid for the first hour of the match and stood up well defensively.

He then burst into life in brilliant style over the final 20 minutes and was a key figure in Glasgow’s priceless victory.

This was the Jones that Warriors fans have been crying out to see. His electric running ability is such a joy to watch when he’s in full flow.

What I will say, though, is that there’s still more to come. Jones set exceptionally high standards for himself after exploding on to the scene with Scotland.

But this was his best game for Glasgow in a long time — and how the fans enjoyed it.

He showed great presence of mind and awareness to slip the ball back inside for Ali Price’s try as the Glasgow charge began.

Edinburgh fought back and looked good to go on and win it, but you have to give Warriors so much credit for the way they were able to dig deep and fight back.

That’s a victory which could effectively salvage their season. It was all threatening to go a little bit flat after the defeat to La Rochelle and the news that Rennie is leaving to coach Australia.

With five yellow cards, the game probably looks like quite an illtempered affair. But I didn’t see it like that.

Judging from his post-match comments, I wouldn’t be surprised if Richard Cockerill seeks further clarification from the Pro14 over some of the decisions from referee Ben Blain.

Yeah, there was a little bit of niggle. But that’s what you expect in a derby. The players probably enjoyed it all.

In particular, I found the yellow card shown to Stuart McInally really harsh. The referee has looked at it purely in terms of the letter of the law.

But there needs to be a degree of common sense applied to these things. Where else was McInally realistically expected to go?

Fraser Brown was basically falling into him. It’s not like McInally really went for him or used any great force in the challenge.

Zander Fagerson was rightly named man of the match. He was absolutely outstanding from first minute to last.

He caused Pierre Schoeman so many problems in the scrum and he was excellent in the way he got around the pitch in the loose.

For a tighthead prop to perform like that for 80 minutes was brilliant. He even chipped in with a couple of turnovers which a back-rower would have been proud of.

For all the talk of Edinburgh having the better pack, it was Glasgow’s physicality which shone through in the end and won them the match.

Blair Kinghorn looked like he had spoiled the party with an absolutely brilliant finish, jinking inside from the wing.

Darcy Graham also looked lively and the way he burst past Kyle Steyn in the first half reminded me of Jason Robinson at his peak.

Whilst Edinburgh can count themselves unfortunate to be on the wrong end of the scoreline, Cockerill won’t allow them to feel sorry for themselves.

He’ll demand a response from his players next week as they seek to redress the balance on home turf at BT Murrayfield.

It’s a bigger pitch at the national stadium — and that’s something which should actually suit both teams in terms of finding more fluency in their attack.

We all know Glasgow can be lethal on the counter-attack, while Edinburgh have also been playing more expansively this season.

With a back three of Graham, Kinghorn and Duhan van der Merwe, they’ll have threats coming from all angles in what should be another belter of a contest.