'Leinster will punish us' - Ryan Wilson admits Glasgow Warriors must improve on Zebre showing

Ryan Wilson has admitted that Glasgow will have to play far better than they did against Zebre at the weekend if they are to have a chance against champions Leinster at Scotstoun on Friday.

Ryan Wilson in action for Glasgow Warriors. (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

But the Warriors captain insisted after the 17-6 win in Parma that he still has great belief in the squad, and said they could take inspiration from the last time they met Leinster, when they won 15-12 in the Rainbow Cup back in June.

“We will obviously look at that game and use that,” Wilson said. “It’s a different group now, but it’s still one we have huge confidence in.

“We know Leinster will punish us if we play like we did against Zebre. So we need to make a few changes and make sure we adapt, because we know how tough they’ll be.”

Wilson admitted that at one point on Saturday he had worried that a 17-match winning run against Zebre was about to end, and credited the Italians for the way they fought back from a poor start. “In the back of your mind, you are aware of the record. It’s one of those ones: ‘When does the time come?’

“You never mention that during the week. We just focused and spoke about ourselves, but we did also look at Zebre a hell of a lot and we gave them a lot of credit.”

Lewis Bean and Sione Tuipulotu scored first-half tries that looked like putting the Warriors on the way to five match points against the home team, for whom Carlo Canna scored two penalties. But the only score in a scrappy second half was a penalty from Duncan Weir to add to his two conversions.

Even so, while Glasgow flew home with four points instead of five, it was still a third win on the trot in the URC. “A win’s a win,” Wilson added. “Championships aren’t won here in October. It’s further down the line. So we need to make sure we’re picking up these points along the way.

“We are doing that, even if they are ugly wins. As long as we’re still doing the job, then it all adds up at the end of the season.”

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