Treviso loss leaves crisis of confidence
midwinter roller-coaster ride took another downward lurch as they crashed in Italy.
The woeful Warriors were desperate to get their Pro14 title quest back on track in the wake of their double defeat by Edinburgh.
But another wretched performance handed the glory to Treviso – leaving Dave Rennie’s men with a confidence crisis before their crucial Euro clash with Cardiff.
And candid boss Rennie admitted his off-form Warriors got what they deserved for bungling the Italian job.
He declared: “Again, we paid the price for poor accuracy and execution at important moments.
“We will have to improve when we take on Cardiff in the Heineken Champions Cup next weekend.”
Rennie paid tribute to the influence on Treviso of his Kiwi compatriot Kieran Crowley.
He said: “Kieran has done superbly since he took over as coach.
“He has recruited really well and their line-out driving hurts the opposition.
“He has turned them into genuine play-off contenders.”
The opening sparring session was scrappy – but it was Glasgow who found their rhythm first.
They tested the home defence with a series of raids, however they couldn’t find a way through.
Having weathered the early storm, Treviso spurned the chance of three points and opted for a penalty lineout.
But it was the turn of Glasgow’s back-ranks to dig deep and clear the immediate danger.
The hosts kept up the momentum to break the deadlock with a close-range try by Dean Budd, goaled by Tommy Allan.
The Warriors’ response was strong, however there was more frustration as Stafford Mcdowall was blocked on the line.
But two minutes later centre Sam Johnson marked his comeback from injury by powering his way through - Adam Hastings adding the extras.
The frantic action continued with Budd completing his quickfire double at the other end to give his side the lead again. Back came Glasgow in the build up to the interval to seize the initiative.
Johnson turned from scorer to provider as he sent George Horne over with a perfectly-judged short pass.
Hastings found the target with the final kick of the half.
Warriors had the better of the territorial battle after the restart
But they were caught cold yet again when the home troops scored during their first visit to the danger zone.
Braam Steyn shrugged off three tackles to reach the line following well-controlled phase play.
Hastings levelled the contest on the hour-mark with a penalty – only for Allan to reply in identical fashion.
Niko Matawalu thought he had snatched it for Glasgow with a clear run-in – but it was chalked off for a forward pass by Hastings.
The Warriors display was summed up when sub Brandon Thomson fluffed a late penalty which would have at least salvaged a draw.