Glasgow Warriors star explains why sharing a city with Celtic and Rangers is 'challenging'

Trying to drag eyes away from Celtic and Rangers feels like an enduring and thankless task but Glasgow Warriors will continue to chip away in an attempt to make some inroads.

The Scotstoun side have been given a substantial leg-up in that regard thanks to their efforts in winning last season’s United Rugby Championship to claim just the second major honour in the club’s history.

That achievement was marked on Wednesday with a civic reception hosted by the Lord Provost of Glasgow, Jacqueline McLaren, at the city chambers and attended by around 150 players, staff and sponsors who all made a contribution in their own way to that success.

Kyle Steyn, Lord Provost of the City of Glasgow Jacqueline McLaren, and Rory Darge alongside the United Rugby Championship trophy during a Glasgow Warriors civic reception at the Glasgow City Chambers, on September 04, 2024. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)

Gaining wider recognition, however, continues to prove difficult. Scotland internationals Kyle Steyn and Rory Darge were in George Square for a media call prior to the reception and, beyond a few requests for selfies, it was hardly the second coming of Beatlemania.

That is no shade on the players or the club but, instead, another sign of how tough it is to make any lasting impact on a sporting landscape dominated by the Old Firm to the detriment of just about everything else.

“It is definitely challenging,” admits Steyn. “It's always going to be a big challenge in Glasgow. I think you've just got to accept that for what it is and try to use what we've done last season and the family aspect of Scotstoun as our biggest drivers. That might not always be appealing to the same group of people but that's fine. I think that's what Glasgow is. Glasgow is about people and there's a place for everyone. Anyone's welcome at Scotstoun.

“We always try to encourage that, especially the family aspect of the occasion. It's a great day out. We've got our Friday nights mostly back this season, which is great again. That's where we tend to get our best atmosphere. So we’re looking forward to it and hopefully we'll welcome many new fans.”

The civic reception and the friendly faces Steyn has run into throughout the summer have shown that, in pockets, this URC triumph has not gone unnoticed.

“In places we go every week, cafes and stuff like that, it was just amazing to feel the buzz around Glasgow,” he adds. “Everywhere you went there was someone just saying how happy they were and really chuffed to be a part of it. So I really just enjoyed that part, being a part of the wider community and getting the feel of that.

“It's a bit of a weird one [having the civic reception] now with the new season coming and trying to focus on that. But yeah, to be recognised by the city today I think is a really special mark to that group.”

The biggest challenge, of course, for Warriors is to prove that the trophy lift wasn’t a flash in the pan when the league campaign gets underway in a few weeks.

“It's going to be a whole squad effort but I think it's about sitting down and refocusing where we're at and where we're aiming to be,” adds Steyn. “We can't just be coming in every day expecting to do the same thing and get the same results. Wanting a different challenge and creating a bit of a challenge around that is going to be key.”