Seymour hits his stride just in time for Munster clash
THIS impressive Guinness Pro12 win over Cardiff Blues could not have come at a better time, especially with winger Tommy Seymour taking the spotlight as only he can.
The Scotland winger set up two tries for full-back Peter Murchie and was Glasgow’s main attacking threat, constantly running great angles throughout the 80 minutes. He was also superb under the high ball, turning defence into attack at every opportunity.
He helped inspire a convincing bonus-point victory which has given Glasgow a huge confidence boost ahead of the must-win European Champions Cup match against Munster at Scotstoun on Saturday.
If they can beat the Irish giants and then Leicester Tigers away the following weekend, it will give them a superb chance of topping the group. Or, at the very least, finishing as one of the best three second-placed teams who also qualify for the knockout stages.
Another bonus-point win would also come in handy, which makes Seymour’s masterclass against Cardiff on Saturday all the more timely.
Top scorer in the Pro12 with eight tries in nine league games, he was handed the sponsors’ manof-the-match award at Scotstoun.
And the winger, who is set to sign a contract extension to his existing deal that runs out next summer, knows Glasgow’s destiny is in their own hands going into the final two European matches.
‘We’ve highlighted the fact we’ve not been at our best in Europe in the past and have struggled to get consistency but, hopefully, that can change over the next fortnight, said 28-year-old Seymour.
‘We haven’t been able to get to the knockout stages in Europe yet but, fingers crossed, if we can keep this form, we can do it this year.
‘These are two tough fixtures, starting against Munster, who were hugely impressive in beating Racing 92 in Paris at the weekend. We’re a facing a huge game but we go into it confident after the Cardiff win and we know two wins could take us through.’
Glasgow dominated from the outset on Saturday, as Seymour
played a pivotal role.
In setting up Murchie’s first try, he took a pass from Mark Bennett before leaving two defenders trailing in his wake as he sprinted towards the line. He then fed Alex Dunbar who managed to offload to the full-back to score.
Later, Seymour picked up a ball from scrum-half Ali Price at an angle before straightening up and playing in Murchie for his second try.
Although the Glasgow attack was superb, the foundations for the win were laid by a forward pack pushed on by captain Jonny Gray.
It was no surprise that the other two Glasgow tries came from forwards, with hooker Pat MacArthur getting the first.
When he went off, his replacement James Malcolm went over for a try of his own after a perfectly-executed maul rumbled over the Cardiff line.
Fly-half Finn Russell kicked three conversions and a penalty but the man of the moment wasn’t at his best. Only in flashes did he show why Toulon, Montpellier, Gloucester and Bath are all competing to sign him.
Although he’s receptive to a move away from Glasgow, the SRU hierarchy will force him to honour the final year of his contract which ends in May 2018.
That means he can keep his focus on Glasgow’s Pro12 and European challenge for the time being, albeit he struggled to do so against Cardiff. Although Russell looked good in attack, he tried to be far too clever in defence.
One poor clearance kick from inside his own 22metre line failed to find Seymour and was received by Cardiff winger Blaine Scully, who ran in to score.
With three minutes left, Cardiff got another try through Rhun Williams as Glasgow took their foot off the gas.
But this merited victory takes Glasgow up into fourth place in the Pro12 table and allows them to concentrate on preparing for the Munster showdown.
Warriors head coach Gregor Townsend and his coaches watched most of Munster’s 32-7 demolition of Racing 92 in Paris on Saturday afternoon before turning the television off after their fourth try secured the important bonus point.
Townsend, like Seymour, believes Glasgow have their destiny in their own hands but conceded that Munster’s performance in a Champions Cup game rearranged from last October after the untimely death of Anthony Foley showed how hard it would be to overcome them.
‘Even with two wins, we might not top the group but that should still take us through as one of the best second-placed finishers,’ said Townsend.
‘Munster will still be in a strong position to qualify even if they lose to us next Saturday as they have Racing 92 at home in their last game. Given the way they beat them in Paris, you can expect that to be a win for them in Ireland.
‘We know what to expect when they come to Scotstoun as that performance against Racing 92 was made up of typical Munster DNA. They were physical around the forwards, had a good defence and played territory-based rugby with a lot of line-out drives and kicking.
‘In saying that, we have momentum going into the match and what was really pleasing for us as coaches was the way we really took the game to Cardiff and ran in four tries and showed an attacking edge that will be important if we want to beat Munster.’
It will be tough but we know two wins could take us through