GLASGOW'S FOUR-TRY WIN AGAINST MUNSTER

Glasgow Warriors 32, Munster 10

Glasgow Warriors came good in the most pleasing of ways this evening, beating Munster at Hughenden. Not only was it their first Celtic League win against those Irish opponents, but on the way they also picked up a four-try bonus point.

Their roots of victory, however, were more deeply seated than in the tries by Steve Swindall, Rory Lamont, Andrew Wilson, and Mike Roberts. Glasgow’s game was founded on magnificently solid and aggressive defence.

Hugh Campbell, Glasgow’s head coach, paid due credit to that element of his team’s rugby. “The defence was outstanding throughout the game,” he commented. “It was nice to score four tries, but that defence really earned us the game.”

Without that security, it the margin would have been surely much closer, perhaps as narrow as their one and only previous success against Munster, 18-14 in the Celtic Cup quarter-final at Hughenden nearly two years ago.

It was, though, a win bought at a cost. Euan Murray was so seriously injured that the game was stopped for fully seven minutes early in the first half while the prop was tended on the pitch. He was knocked unconscious, and after he had been assisted from the field he was taken by ambulance to hospital.

His replacement, Stuart Corsar, also was injured, and for the last half an hour or so the scrummages had to uncontested.

Before Murray’s injury, however, Glasgow had struck with an early opening try. Sam Pinder’s break sparked it, Wilson and Scott Barrow went close, and Steve Swindall dived over beside the right post. Parks converted, and after Murray’s departure the stand-off added two penalty goals. After 12 minutes the Warriors led 13-0.

Paul Burke replied almost immediately with a penalty goal. But Glasgow were on song, and the merry tune of Glasgow cheers continued with Parks striking a precise cross kick to the right. The bounce was right for Lamont, and the international wing dived in at the right corner. It was the only try attempt that Parks failed to convert.

As a prelude to the stand-off second penalty goal, a shuddering tackle by Swindall sprung the ball clear for Craig Hamilton to go close on the follow up, and defensive nous of a different vein was needed after the Lamont try, when David Wallace broke out from well within his own half. Roberts swept back to deny Munster at the posts.

Glasgow pressure resumed, and after Lee Harrison had almost made it to the line Pinder’s inside pass sent Wilson in by the right post. Parks converted for 25-3 in 26 minutes, and thoughts were spring about perhaps a fourth-try bonus even before the interval.

That was not to be. Glasgow spent most of the remainder of that first half on the back foot. It was, though, a very aggressive position, and it continued that way into the second half.

Munster raised the stakes by pitching in a couple of Lions – Ronan O’Gara at half-time, Donncha O’Callaghan 10 minutes later. But all the visitors gained from it was a penalty try, which was awarded, it seemed, for break up a close-range scrummage, O’Gara converting. It was there that Corsar was injured, and thereafter the scrums were uncontested.

It was 18 minutes into the second half that Glasgow eventually scored their bonus try, fully half an hour after their third, when Parks chipped ahead for Roberts to sprint through to score between the posts. Parks converted, and a 22-pooint lead clearly stated Glasgow’s case.

One point was in the bag, and Glasgow’s commitment in defence, typified by another covering tackle by Roberts, this time to deny Anthony Horgan, earned them four more over the next 20 plus minutes. They even survived 10 minutes while Parks was in the sin-bin, the stand-off penalised for what appeared to be a deliberate knock-on near halfway.

Fortress Hughenden, it seems, is being rebuilt.

Glasgow Warriors – Calvin Howarth; Rory Lamont, Andy Craig, Scott Barrow, Mike Roberts; Dan Parks (captain), Sam Pinder; Euan Murray, Scott Lawson, Lee Harrison, Tim Barker, Craig Hamilton, Steve Swindall, Paul Dearlove, Andrew Wilson. Substitutes – Stuart Corsar for Murray (4 minutes), Fergus Thomson for Corsar (52), Gregor Hayter for Dearlove (56), Graeme Morrison for Barrow (72), Dan Turner for Barker (77), Graeme Beveridge for Pinder (77), Graydon Staniforth for Roberts (83).
Tries, Swindall, Lamont, Wilson, Roberts; conversions, Parks (3); penalty goals, Parks (2).

Munster – Shaun Payne, Barry Murphy, Rob Henderson, Trevor Halstead, Anthony Horgan, Paul Burke, Frank Murphy, Marcus Horan, Frank Sheahan (captain), Federico Pucciariello, Trevor Hogan, Mick O’Driscoll, Alan Quinlan, Denis Leamy, David Wallace. Substitutes – Anthony Foley for Henderson (half-time), Mike Prendergast for Frank Murphy (half-time), Ronan O’Gara for Burke (half-time), John Kelly for Horgan (46), Donncha O’Callaghan for O’Driscoll (50), Tony Buckley for Pucciariello (66), Jerry Flannery for Sheahan (72).
Try, penalty; conversion, O’Gara; penalty goal, Burke.

Referee – Nigel Owens (Wales).

Attendance – 1884.

This article was originally posted on 17-Sep-2005, 22:33 by Hugh Barrow.
Last updated by Hugh Barrow on 17-Sep-2005, 22:35.