Glasgow 43-17 Connacht: Warriors close gap at top of table

Glasgow secured a bonus-point win against Pro14 rivals Connacht at Scotstoun to move to within a point of leaders Munster.
Glasgow Warriors' Robbie Nairn touches down to score a try. Picture: SNSGlasgow Warriors' Robbie Nairn touches down to score a try. Picture: SNS
Glasgow Warriors' Robbie Nairn touches down to score a try. Picture: SNS

Connacht came into the game immediately behind second-placed Glasgow in Conference A, but the hosts effectively won the game in the first half. They opened the scoring in the first minute with a try from scrum-half George Horne and then closed strongly, with tries in the 32nd and 38th minutes, set up by forward drives and scored by Tim Swinson and Grant Stewart.

A second try by Stewart after 45 minutes got the try bonus point. But Glasgow let Connacht into the game with tries through Paul Boyle and Tom Daly, the latter converted by Kyle Godwin, to add to Stephen Fitzgerald’s first-half effort.

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Glasgow did add a late brace of tries from Robbie Nairn, with Brandon Thomson converting every one bar the last.

Warriors secured Connacht’s kick-off and within 45 seconds had scored their first try.

Winger Kyle Steyn did the damage with top try scorer scrum-half Horne taking his season’s total to seven.

A long break by visitors scrum half Kieran Marmion, making his 150th appearance, led to huge pressure on the home line that was resisted and a break by Steyn led to a penalty slotted by Thomson.

After 22 minutes Connacht pulled a try back, cleverly scored by right winger Fitzgerald but his stand off brother Conor, up from the academy for the night, missed the conversion.

Play having been loose, Glasgow took control for the rest of the half to build up a 24-5 lead at the break.

Successive penalties allowed Warriors to get into opposition territory where Horne dodged to the line and, in the following surge, Swinson scored.

With two minutes of the half left, Glasgow got over from a lineout drive, with hooker Grant Stewart touching down and Connacht lock James Cannon picking up a yellow card.

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Thomson put over both conversions and the half ended with a missed penalty by Conor Fitzgerald.

Five minutes after the restart Glasgow had the try bonus. Again there was the lineout drive from which dynamic hooker Stewart broke away for a thrilling score, converted by Thomson.

Connacht then monopolised possession and pressed continually in the Glasgow half. Godwin dropped the ball over the goal line and the home side resisted until, after 63 minutes, substitute Boyle succeeded in scoring an unconverted try which was soon followed by Daly.

Glasgow substitute Nairn added two tries to put the gloss on the scoreline. Glasgow coach Dave Rennie was pleased with his side’s display. He said: “I thought it was a pretty good performance overall. We were very clinical and executed our exit strategies well. We felt that, after 20 minutes, we hadn’t really built any pressure – we gave away a few penalties and hadn’t kicked on as we should have. From then on, though, we were excellent. There were some young men out there tonight who fronted up well for us. I’m pleased with how we went.”