WARRIOR SPIRIT
Glasgow lose a man but win the battle
NEVER let it be said that Glasgow Warriors do things the easy way. Despite playing over an hour of last night’s match with just 14 men, they were able to put Scarlets to the sword in a thrilling encounter at Scotstoun.
After prop Alex Allan was shown a red card for a high tackle on 18 minutes, Dave Rennie’s men had their backs firmly to the wall.
Digging deep into their reserves of self-belief, though, they defied the odds with what was arguably their finest display of the season so far, given the circumstances.
Fly-half Brandon Thomson kicked 24 of their 29 points as Warriors cemented their position at the top of Conference A in the Pro14.
‘It was a really mature, gritty performance from us,’ said a delighted Rennie. ‘We knew it was going to be tough before the game, doubly so when you have to do it with 14 men.
‘But the guys gave a really positive response. It was a massive effort, so I’m really proud of them.
‘In terms of the red card itself, when you catch someone on the chin with your shoulder, that’s just the rules now. These things are being stamped out. You’ve just got to accept that.’
Wales fly-half Rhys Patchell slotted a penalty to put Scarlets into an early lead, only for his opposite number Thomson to level things up on 12 minutes.
The game’s major flashpoint came just five minutes later, with the clash between Glasgow prop Allan and Welsh lock Jake Ball. Referee Frank Murphy completely missed it initially, but play was pulled back by TMO Charles Samson.
It was to the incredulity of the home crowd that Murphy duly showed a red card to Allan.
It had a galvanising effect on Glasgow. Not only did they refuse to buckle, they puffed out their chests and came charging back at their opponents.
Flanker Matt Smith was having a fine game for the home side, but he was sacrificed for prop Oli Kebble as Rennie was forced to shuffle his pack just after the 20-minute mark.
And Kebble made his presence felt immediately. Within 60 seconds of his arrival, the Glasgow scrum had won a penalty, which Thomson kicked to make it 6-3.
Scarlets lock Lewis Rawlins, who had been on the field for barely 10 minutes, was then sin-binned just shy of the half-hour mark for not rolling away from the tackle.
Thomson was having an excellent game and got the first try of the night on 30 minutes. Glasgow’s bravery was rewarded when, after winning a penalty, they opted to kick for the corner rather than take an easy three points.
They built the phases from the line-out. Tackled just short, Thomson eventually managed to stretch out with one arm and dot the ball down over the line, before slotting the conversion for 13-3.
It was a chaotic, breathless game. As half-time arrived, the fans would have been just as glad as the players to have a chance to restore some air in their lungs.
Remarkably, Glasgow extended their lead two minutes into the second half. A turnover allowed them to launch a rapid counter-attack.
Ruaridh Jackson chipped the ball over the Scarlets defence and Nick Grigg, making his 50th appearance for the club, finished off the move. Thomson again kicked the extras.
Robbie Nairn was then denied a try on his debut after a wonderful, flowing team move from Glasgow was penalised for a forward pass from Scott Cummings to George Horne.
Scarlets began their fight back on 46 minutes, with Wales centre Jonathan Davies charging over powerfully after Jackson and Niko Matawalu had failed to make their tackles. Patchell missed the conversion from out wide.
Thomson then slotted another couple of penalties to put Warriors 26-8 ahead with 20 minutes to go.
Scarlets flanker Tom Phillips was then sin-binned on 67 minutes for a high tackle that did not look a great deal different than the one which saw Allan given his marching orders.
But still the Welshmen refused to give in. Despite being down to 14 men, they scored further tries from Steff Evans and Clayton Blommetjies, with Patchell converting the latter of the two.
That made the score 26-20 in Glasgow’s favour, the visitors now within reach of a converted try.
But the home side finally killed them off with a late penalty from Thomson, taking his personal points tally for the night to 24 points.