THE SCOTSMAN REPORTS

Firhill played host to a feast of good rugby on the return of the Glasgow rugby team after four years away. Picture: Colin Hattersley

Beattie provides the jagged edge for Firhill homecoming
DAVID FERGUSON AT FIRHILL
Glasgow 46
Edinburgh 6

GLASGOW took to their new Firhill home like ducks to water yesterday with a stunning six-try blitz which lifts Hugh Campbell's men to fifth in the Celtic League table, equal with the Border Reivers, who earned four points the easy way at the weekend, through a bye week.


Edinburgh were left stunned, their struggle to bring variation to Frank Hadden 's expansive style running aground on the rocks of an incredibly fired-up, aggressive and more cohesive Glasgow side, whose forwards totally dominated.

In terms of providing some hope for Scottish rugby, after a difficult autumn Test series, the performances of youngsters in the Glasgow ranks, notably man-of-the-match John Beattie, was worth savouring. Edinburgh merely proved, however, that they cannot function without their Test men.

After sniping from both sides in the first quarter, the Warriors supporters began to settle into their new surroundings, in their return to Partick Thistle's ground after an absence of four years, and the game exploded with the kind of excitement which augurs well for the SRU's attempts to lift professional rugby onto a new level on the west coast.

One could even detect a smile crossing the face of Allan Munro, the union's chairman, whose Edinburgh allegiances were no doubt swayed by the knowledge that no marketing gimmicks can match three tries in ten minutes for encouraging rugby supporters. The first came in the 24th minute and it was effectively started and finished by Beattie. The Warriors' No 8 showed a terrific touch, reminiscent of his days as a Glasgow schools footballer, when he relieved pressure on the home 22 with a great 40-metre kick to touch in the Edinburgh half.

The hosts then stole the Edinburgh lineout, one of a series of throws which went awry from both sides - the visitors were missing Scott Murray - and then put together a great series of attacks in the hosts' 22 with great urgency.

The young Glasgow back row of Beattie, John Barclay and Stevie Swindall, whose average age is less than 21, showed terrific appetite for the contact, the breakdown and carrying ball to Edinburgh; just the kind of play Hadden, the Scotland coach, must have been delighted to see.

The picture turned from bad to worse as Glasgow were rewarded for their tremendous spirit in defence - on the Edinburgh 22 - when Barclay then charged down an attempted clearance from Duncan Hodge, and Colin Gregor pounced to touch down just before the ball crossed the dead-ball line.

Sarcastic chants from an Edinburgh supporter of 'We're in your half', from the resultant restart, merely highlighted how much the Celtic League high-fliers had slipped out of the contest. In fact, he was shaking his head just minutes later when another charge-down of a Hodge kick, this time by Gregor himself, was only saved from a try by the alacrity of Simon Webster in winning the race to the kick-ahead.

The game retained a one-way flow, however, and there was little surprise when the light blue jerseys of Glasgow opened Edinburgh up again, on the stroke of half-time, Beattie's reverse pass on the right touchline sending Graydon Staniforth breezing through a gap and round behind the posts.

That secured for the hosts a bonus point and Gregor's conversion, taking Glasgow to a 23-point half-time lead, earned a rousing ovation from the Firhill crowd.

Todd Blackadder, the Edinburgh coach, took action at half-time by sending Murray, the veteran Scotland lock, on for Fergus Pringle, but a Gregor penalty just a minute into the second half had the scoreboard clicking again in the hosts' favour before he even touched the ball.

However, almost inevitably, Edinburgh stepped up their fight and spent virtually the entire third quarter encamped in the home half.

There was a cheer, presumably from the visiting support, when Phil Godman replaced the struggling Edinburgh skipper, Hodge, 12 minutes into the half, but despite the aggressive efforts of Mike Blair, Webster, Hugo Southwell, Murray and Allan Jacobsen, in particular, breaching the home defence still proved an extremely arduous task.

In fact, several promising moves, lineout drives for example, ended with ball being ripped by Glasgow hands and possession lost. When Glasgow did return to the Edinburgh half, there could not have been a more stark contrast. A break by Sam Pinder, who had replaced Graeme Beveridge at scrum-half, and Beattie run created the platform, and when the ball was shipped right Staniforth raced between Blair and Murray with consummate ease to again cruise round behind the posts.

Gregor's conversion took the hosts into a 39-6 lead. Even Irish referee Alan Lewis seemed to feel some sympathy for the capital men, sin-binning Lee Harrison for a ruck infringement - Glasgow had been warned - just eight minutes after he had replaced Euan Murray in the front row. But even the plethora of late substitutions revealed a difference between the sides.

While Edinburgh were forced into a reshuffle with Andy Kelly, the hooker, moving to the back row, Alasdair Strokosch to lock and Steven Lawrie into hooker, the hosts brought on Scotland pair Dan Parks and Andy Henderson for Gregor and Scott Barrow, the departing duo receiving deserved applause, and promising under-21 cap Fergus Thomson for Scott Lawson at hooker.

To cap Edinburgh's misery, even when Simon Cross did get over the line for Edinburgh, with ten minutes remaining, Rory Lamont held him up, and Graeme Morrison duly rubbed salt in the wounds with a sixth try.

Parks' conversion from the right touchline secured a record number of points scored by Glasgow in this fixture and a result which must entice more than the 2,003 who turned up yesterday along to the next home game, against Bath a week on Friday.

But, what will be said in the Edinburgh camp this week as they prepare to play host to Toulouse on Saturday is anybody's guess.

Scorers: Glasgow: Tries - Beattie, Tkachuk, Gregor, Staniforth 2, Morrison; Pens - Gregor 2; Cons - Gregor 5. Edinburgh: Pens - Hodge 2.

Glasgow: G Staniforth; H O'Hare, G Morrison, S Barrow, R Lamont; C Gregor, G Beveridge (capt); E Murray, S Lawson, K Tkachuk, T Barker, C Hamilton, S Swindall, J Beattie, J Barclay. Subs: S Pinder for Beveridge 46mins, L Harrison for Murray, 53, G Hayter for Swindall 60, D Parks for Gregor, A Henderson for Barrow, both 67, F Thomson for Lawson 69.

Edinburgh: H Southwell; S Webster, P Jorgensen, M Dey, F Leonelli; D Hodge (capt), M Blair; A Jacobsen, A Kelly, A Dickinson, F Pringle, A Kellock, A Strokosch, D Callam, S Cross. Subs: S Murray for Pringle, A MacDonald for Callum, both 40mins, P Godman for Hodge 52, D Hewett for Dickinson 55, S Lawrie for Kellock 66,J Blackwood for Blair, M Pyke for Leonelli, both 74.

Referee: A Lewis (Ire). Attendance: 2,003

This article was posted on 5-Dec-2005, 07:53 by Hugh Barrow.