Warriors have got power to pack a PUNCH
AS A local lad growing up at Kelvinside Academy and a boyhood fan of Glasgow Warriors, Scott Cummings knows all too well what the long-standing narrative has been around his club in the 1872 Cup.
As far back as he can remember, Glasgow have had a reputation as a flashy and flamboyant team with a licence to thrill.
Yet, the flipside of that theory has been the accusation that they have a soft centre which can be sliced through with as much as ease as a Christmas pudding.
Fairly or otherwise, they were effectively viewed as the Spice Boys of Scottish rugby when compared with their rivals Edinburgh.
There have been times when Edinburgh have been able to field almost the entire Scotland pack, with Glasgow supplementing that grunt with flair players in the backs.
But Cummings feels last weekend’s victory for the Warriors at Scotstoun proved a point. The mental resolve they showed, particularly over a chaotic final 20 minutes, spoke volumes.
Ali Price’s try looked like it had clinched victory in a tight game midway through the second half — only for Edinburgh to come off the ropes and throw another haymaker courtesy of Blair Kinghorn’s try.
At that point, the visitors were ahead and were threatening to derail Glasgow’s entire season, only for the Warriors to dig deep and find a second wind.
‘Glasgow are always being told that the backs are amazing — and that the forwards need to step up,’ argued 23-year-old lock Cummings.
‘For us as a forward pack, we know that we have the ability to dominate teams. I think we’ve shown in the last couple of weeks that we can play different ways and actually win battles up front.
‘So, as a pack, we were really focusing on that, and I think we came out quite strongly in that area against Edinburgh last weekend.
‘The forwards have scored three tries in the last three weeks, so we know that’s an area we are going to find tougher because the opposition are going to start pouring numbers in there.
‘They will try to stop us, but that then creates opportunities out the back.
‘John Dalziel (forwards coach) has done a lot of work with us to be more dominant as a pack. We know there are still areas we can improve, but we’re happy that we are starting to get some results.
‘A lot of people come here and think that Glasgow aren’t that tough a team. We feel that some of the English and Irish teams think they can come here and bully us.
‘So we always have that mantra that we don’t get bullied at Scotstoun. We know that if we go out there and win that physical battle, then we have the execution in the backs to go and play that exciting brand of rugby we love.
‘But it all starts with the forwards — if we’re not getting good ball to play with then the backs can’t do their thing.’
Cummings certainly feels like Glasgow silenced a few critics last weekend. Their dominance up front was exemplified by Zander Fagerson more than any other player.
Fagerson was a colossus. He shredded Pierre Schoeman at the scrum and made a pest of himself in the loose, winning the sort of turnovers which would have been more befitting of a back-rower than a tighthead prop.
Of a rivalry which clearly gets his juices flowing, Cummings continued: ‘We’re all obviously fighting for Scotland places but that’s at the back of your mind. First and foremost, we’re there to do a job for Glasgow.
‘Glasgow means so much to us — especially for someone like me, who has grown up in the city.
‘I don’t go out there to play for Scotland, I go out there to play for Glasgow — and whatever comes from that is a separate thing.’
Having won the first encounter in the three-match series, Glasgow will travel to Murrayfield on Saturday looking to seal the deal and clinch the 1872 Cup for the first time in two-and-a-half-years.
Whether that can be the sort of triumph that sparks them into life over the second half of the season, only time will tell.
But there is no question that they need to find a level of consistency in their game. They’ll be bidding to win back-to-back games in the Pro14 for just the second time this season.
Asked if he’s expecting a backlash from Edinburgh, Cummings replied: ‘Yeah, definitely. I think it would come either way — whoever won and whoever lost.
‘It is up to us to step up as well because I’m sure it will be an even bigger occasion.’