Johnny Matthews has Glasgow try record in sights after signing new deal - but don’t call him Salah

Warriors hooker reveals why he is not best pleased with comparisons to Liverpool star

Johnny Matthews in action for Glasgow Warriors during the recent BKT United Rugby Championship win over Ulster at Scotstoun Stadium. He scored two tries, including one he ran in from 25 metres. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)

He’s the most prolific try-scorer in the league and there are only four players who have bagged more than him in Glasgow Warriors’ history but Johnny Matthews balks when told he’s been described as the ‘Scotstoun Salah’.

“No, I didn’t like that at all,” says the proud Evertonian. “Maybe the Scotstoun Saha [after Louis Saha] would be better. He was a good player for Everton.”

Louis Saha might be preferable to Mo Salah for someone brought up on the blue side of Liverpool but Matthews’ numbers bear better comparison with the Anfield great. The hooker has ten tries already this season and scored 20 over the course of 2023, the first player in the pro era to hit that mark in a calendar year for Glasgow. His overall career stats for the Warriors show 34 tries in 60 appearances of which only 23 were starts.

They are phenomenal figures and the new year promises much, much more for the likeable Anglo-Scot. He’s just signed a new contract with Glasgow until 2026 and, at 30, is playing the best rugby of his career. It was recognised with a call-up to the Scotland World Cup squad in the summer and he made his Test debut off the bench against Romania in Lille. He marked the occasion with a try (natch) and it would be a major surprise if he were not included when Gregor Townsend names his squad for the Six Nations next week.

“That’s out of my hands,” said Matthews, whose mother is from Glasgow. “I’m just trying to focus on playing well here at Glasgow and putting my hand up. If I can do that, then hopefully I’m in with a shot of getting into the national team for the Six Nations. I had a taste of it during the World Cup and that was obviously a great experience for me. It’s a special group to be part of. It would be massive to get back into the squad if I can do it.”

He admits the last couple of seasons have had an almost dream-like quality as he’s gone from fourth in the pecking order of hookers at Scotstoun to becoming the go-to man whenever a try is required. Glasgow, under Franco Smith, have become the lineout maul specialists and it’s Matthews more often than not who’s on the end of it to finish things off. But it would be unfair to pigeonhole him. He has a fair turn of pace as shown by his try against Ulster in November when he ran it in from 25 metres out.

Matthews’ exploits this season mean he has moved clear of Stuart Hogg and Sean Lamont and up to fifth place in the list of Glasgow Warriors’ top try-scorers of all time. With his tally of 34, only George Horne (42), Niko Matawalu (44), Tommy Seymour (48) and DTH van der Merwe (54) are ahead of him. The hooker insists he’s not thinking about trying to top the list but knows that if continues to score at the rate he has been then it’s a possibility.

“If I keep playing and the maul keeps on going well, then I suppose there’s every chance I might get close to it,” he concedes. “As long as I’m fit and still in the squad, then hopefully I will have the opportunity to score a few more tries along the way.

“Not all of my tries have come from the maul. I’ve scored a few from open play as well. Some people have actually commented on that. Apparently, I’m deceptively quite fast. But, growing up in Liverpool, you need a decent turn of pace!

“We work hard here to be all-round athletes. You don’t want to be one-dimensional, especially as a forward. I don’t actually know where I’d rank in the speed tests. The backs and forwards do them separately. But I would definitely be up there. I’d back myself over 10 metres against most of the forwards. But, to be honest, my main focus is on the other areas of my game. Ultimately, those are the areas where a hooker is judged.”

Matthews first moved to Scotland to join Boroughmuir and excelled in the Premiership. He joined Glasgow initially on a short-term contract as cover while a lot of the club’s players were away at the 2019 World Cup but soon grew into a hugely important player for the Warriors and was delighted to sign a new contract this week.

“It’s nice to be staying for the next few years,” he says. “It’s a great club to be part of, on and off the pitch. As soon as the conversations started between myself and the club, I was happy to get it done and commit my future.

“If I’m honest, when I first came up to Scotland, I probably didn’t see myself staying this long. I was originally just signed as cover for the World Cup, but then I kept getting little extensions along the way. To be here for this long, and now have a new extension for the next few years, it’s a dream come true.

“It’s massively important. For me and my wife, we have that little bit of security now for the next few years. It’s a huge relief and a nice little weight off the shoulders to have that little bit of security.

“I’ve loved Glasgow as a city. It’s similar to Liverpool. But I actually live in Edinburgh and that’s great as well. But my Mum is from Glasgow, along with all her family. So it’s been a great place for me.”