George Horne praises Glasgow Warriors' bravery on the ball, now they have to do it on the road

Plenty of flak came Glasgow’s way after their flaccid performance against Benetton in Italy in the URC opener, so it’s only right they are given plaudits for the manner of their victory over Cardiff on Friday night.

George Horne celebrates Glasgow Warriors' 52-24 win over Cardiff on their long-awaited return to Scotstoun. (Photo by Ross Parker / SNS Group)

The thing scrum-half George Horne was most proud of was the courage they showed in attack, echoing the Warriors teams of the past rather than the dog days of last season’s run-in when things unravelled at an alarming rate.

To be fair to Danny Wilson, the string of defeats that cost the ex-coach his job all came away from home and it will be interesting to see how Glasgow shape up next week when they travel to Wales to take on the Ospreys.

That will be a big test for Franco Smith and his players but for now the new boss can bask in the afterglow of Friday’s 52-24 win as they made their return to Scotstoun after a near six-month absence.

Rory Darge’s serious ankle injury cast a cloud but Horne relished Glasgow’s homecoming.

“It was actually a bit emotional to be back playing at home again and I loved every minute of it,” said the scrum-half who contributed 17 points and was deservedly named player of the match.

“We kind of got back to our old DNA of attacking, holding on to the ball and playing at high speed. We set out to fire the first shot and really take the game to Cardiff. We were frustrated since we didn’t really do that last week.

“It’s something that we’re probably more comfortable doing – playing a riskier, high-tempo style of rugby. We did that for almost the full 85 minutes, given that the clock ran over and we didn’t want to kick the ball out at the end. That shows our fitness.”

Horne’s had a frustrating couple of seasons due to injuries but was back to his best on Friday, even finishing the game on the wing after Kyle Steyn went off with a tight hamstring.

“We weren’t talking about being fearful after what happened last week,” added Horne. “The theme was to try and be brave and show what we can do. We didn’t go into our shells and try to not lose the game. The mindset was to try and win.”

Next stop, Swansea.