ANDY NICOL’S RUGBY COLUMN: Glasgow Warriors head coach Gregor Townsend makes brave …

Go to Source

 

By Andy Nichol

 

There is something special happening at Scotstoun. To be there on Friday night and experience it first-hand highlighted to me just how far this club has come.

 

When I returned from Bath in 1999, Glasgow were playing in the Welsh League – travelling by bus to  South Wales every two weeks and, not surprisingly, we didn’t win  many games.

 

Our home games were at  Hughenden, which was atmospheric, but the pitch had a huge slope, there was only one small stand  and the changing rooms were appalling.

 

To be part of a packed, modern stadium, expanded to meet the demand of 10,000 fans, passionately cheering on a team in the process of making history by reaching the Pro12 final was a wonderful experience.

 

The journey for Glasgow Warriors may have been a long one, but it was certainly worth the wait.

 

If the environment they play in has changed, so has the quality of the team on the pitch and the coaching team off it. I saw a club, not a team, win the game against Munster.

 

Obviously, only 15 can be picked to start but the non-playing squad members formed a guard-of-honour to greet the players on to the pitch. They are all in this together and it’s hard to explain how important that is to their overall success.

 

For Stuart Hogg, it must have been a tough experience. This time last year, he was preparing to go with the Lions to Australia but, on Friday, he was passed over for  selection. However, he was still there cheering on his mates, which proves there is a real team spirit.

 

Hogg’s non-selection was just one of many tough decisions Gregor Townsend has made throughout the season and, yet again, it was the right one.

 

As a player, Gregor was always brave enough to try things. He has carried this trait into his  blossoming coaching career. He has chopped and changed the team all season which can, in certain environments, mean players switch off and get disinterested – but this is not the case at Scotstoun.

 

One of his big decisions was to go with Finn Russell at stand-off. The easy decision for a semi-final would have been to go with the experience of Duncan Weir or Ruaridh Jackson, but Gregor made the right call  again.

 

Russell attacked the line, wasn’t scared to have a go himself, his passing skills are out of the top drawer and he is brave in defence. Add in his kicking ability and you have all  the ingredients required to play  international rugby in the No 10 shirt. He looks the real deal and should be taken on Scotland’s  summer tour, without question.

 

There were other stand-outs. Jonny Gray was immense with an incredible work rate in attack and defence, Alex Dunbar the same in the backs. Peter Murchie was rock solid at  full-back and Leone Nakarawa brought a different dimension when he replaced Josh Strauss.

 

Gordon Reid also had a huge impact when he came on for another Lion, Ryan Grant – not just scoring Glasgow’s try but doing really well in the scrum and gaining many metres with ball in hand.

 

However, it was the collective  performance that won the game. The desire to work hard for your  team-mate was very apparent,  especially in the closing moments when they were defending a one-point lead.

 

The atmosphere was fantastic and the Glasgow support were not just there to watch the game, they were there to really support their club. The passion and noise emanating from all four stands was immense and contributed greatly to  Glasgow’s success.

 

So now it’s Leinster in Dublin for the final on May 31 – after their 13-9 defeat of Ulster on Saturday – and a chance for Glasgow Warriors to make history by winning a major trophy. The journey has been a long one but what a fitting end this could be!

Comments are closed.