Glasgow Warriors trio with 253 appearances 'must be experiencing weird feelings'
Some players are out to prolong Glasgow career, not just the season
Oli Kebble, George Turner and Ross Thompson have accumulated 253 appearances for Glasgow Warriors and are hoping for two more each before they say a final farewell to the club.
The trio bid a teary goodbye to Scotstoun last weekend, the URC quarter-final win over the Stormers being their last home game in Warriors colours. All three came off the bench to make a significant contribution to the 27-10 victory on what was a landmark evening for Turner and Thompson.
The hooker was making his 100th Glasgow appearance, the stand-off his 50th, and the latter marked the occasion with a try. Kebble hit the century mark earlier this season and they will all be hoping their efforts will ensure selection for Saturday’s semi-final against Munster in Limerick.
A win there would mean a final showdown against either the Bulls or Leinster, and Glasgow would be on their travels again, with Pretoria or Dublin the destination. It's a close knit squad and there is a determination to send the three off in style.
“It must be a weird feeling for those guys,” said Rory Darge, the Glasgow flanker. “When I left Edinburgh I hadn’t really played for the club and even then I remember feeling it was quite strange. So, I can imagine it will be a strange feeling for a player having your last game at Scotstoun when you are someone like George who has had over 100 games for this club, Rossco and Kebble as well are guys who have given so much to the club.
“I remember the first season after I arrived under Danny [Wilson] and there was something like 22 or 23 leavers that year, so it’s not quite the turnaround we had back then, but you are sad to see these guys go.
“In the year we had 22 guys leaving – [Adam] Hastings, [Niko] Matawalu and people like that – we really wanted to give them a good send-off. I think the last game was Leinster at home and we got a good win for them in the Rainbow Cup, so it is something you are desperate to do for guys, especially with the leavers we’ve got this year being guys who have given a serious amount to the club.”
Turner is moving to Japan, where he will link up with former Warriors coach Dave Rennie at Kobe Steelers. Thompson is heading back along the M8 to join Edinburgh and Kebble has yet to reveal his next destination - although there have been hints that it might be France.
If they are to extend their Glasgow careers by one more week then they are going to have to overcome a Munster team who seem to have found the knack of peaking at the right time. Last season, they won all three play-off matches away from home to clinch the title. This time around they are on a run of ten URC wins in a row since January and are guaranteed home advantage in the final if they can overcome the Warriors at Thomond Park.
“Munster are a great team who always seem to come good at this time of the season, so they are really firing now,” acknowledged Darge who was this week named in the Scotland squad for the summer tour to North and South America. “It is going to be a massive challenge – it doesn’t really get much harder than the champions away in a semi – a great club with a lot of history who know how to win knock-out games – but we’re in the semis for a reason and we believe in ourselves so we are excited about the challenge ahead.”
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.