GRAY MATTERS
Warriors coach Wilson eager to work with fellow new arrival Richie after lock’s mystifying absence from national service
LONG before the Finn Russell saga cast its shadow over Scotland’s Six Nations campaign this year, there was already a glaring, high-profile omission from the squad.
One name conspicuous by its absence in recent times has been that of Richie Gray, the towering lock who was winning Top14 titles with Toulouse yet leaving a giant 6ft 8ins hole in the national squad.
It was — and, indeed, still is — a curious business. Gray, who has 65 caps to his name, has not played for Scotland since a Six Nations victory over Italy in Rome in March 2018.
When Gregor Townsend revealed that the 30-year-old twice knocked back the chance to be part of the World Cup squad last year, obvious doubts were cast on the relationship between player and head coach.
Danny Wilson was part of Townsend’s backroom team for the best part of two years and, as forwards coach, would doubtless have enjoyed working with someone of Gray’s talents.
That it never happened is an obvious source of regret. But Wilson, now installed as the new head coach of Glasgow Warriors, is relishing the prospect of them working together at club level.
Gray has rejoined Warriors on a two-year deal and Wilson believes the former British & Irish Lion will provide some genuine leadership to what is likely to be a vastly revamped squad next season.
‘We all know Richie is a huge man, he is a fans’ favourite at Glasgow, and I am really looking forward to working with him,’ said Wilson.
‘I thought we would have worked together during the last 12 to 18 months with Scotland, but for a number of reasons that didn’t happen.
‘But now I have that opportunity and I am looking forward to it. There are different types of leaders — some by example, some by voice. He is very much by example.
‘Where he is a leader is at line-out time. We have seen him call the line-outs at Toulouse, and he is very experienced in that area from an international point of view.
‘Richie will come in with a vast amount of experience and he can be one of those players who passes that on and helps the younger players in his position, and the forwards generally.
‘He is probably a quieter leader than other leaders. He leads by example.’
Gray could well form an exciting new-look partnership in the second row next season with Leone Nakarawa, the Fijian star who has extended his stay at Warriors until next summer.
Wilson is under no illusions that the current Covid shutdown has placed obvious limitations on his budget, but he remains hopeful of making some more new signings.
A full-back will feature high on his shopping list, as will another specialist lock, with Nakarawa likely to alternate between the second and back rows.
In any case, the new head coach believes that the improvements made by the Glasgow pack over past couple of years offer a solid foundation on which to build.
Speaking for the first time since he took over from Dave Rennie, Wilson said: ‘Dave and his staff did a brilliant job in terms of putting some real, massive foundations in place.
‘The quality of that has seen Dave go on to become the head coach in an international environment.
‘So I’m picking up that foundation, if you like. Obviously there are some changes in terms of personnel and me putting my own stamp on things.
‘But we’re fortunate right across the team to have that identity and platform in place.
‘I am excited by the group we have got. We forget how young Zander (Fagerson) is, for an international tight-head and what he is currently doing in the game.
‘From the tail end of the World Cup, from the Japan game onwards, he has just taken off. He is an example of a guy who is climbing and we have got to keep allowing him and pushing him to develop.
‘What I really want to concentrate on is the identity that Glasgow have always had in attack and growing it a little more in defence and transitions around our game management, especially against the big teams who we’ve had close games with.
‘We want to focus on our identity and have a structure in place that can deal with anything, but also having that small percentage that you can change each week based on the opposition you play.
‘For example, the game plan to play Edinburgh would be different than if we were playing the likes of Leinster.
‘But you don’t want to get too drawn down that road of changing everything and changing too much detail. You want to stick to what Glasgow Warriors are all about.
‘All of the most successful sports teams in the world have an identity. Regardless of who they play, they imprint that identity on their opposition. That’s certainly what we’ll be trying to do.’