Glasgow Warriors v Ospreys Friday 28/10/11

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Friday 28th October Kick off 7:05pm. Live on BBC2 Wales from 7:00pm.

Hosts Glasgow Warriors have won both their matches against Welsh sides so far this season. Ospreys have won all six opening games of the Rabo Direct Pro 12 season - another win would equal their own record for the best ever start to a season since the tournament went season-long in 2003/04. An Ospreys win would also be their 100th in the history of the tournament. Glasgow have won just one of their last seven encounters with Ospreys which ended 31-23 at Firhill on the 24th October 2010.

Teams will be added as they're announced.

GLASGOW WARRIORS

15 Stuart Hogg
14 Tommy Seymour
13 Rob Dewey
12 Graeme Morrison
11 Colin Shaw
10 Duncan Weir
9 Chris Cusiter

1 Ryan Grant
2 Pat MacArthur
3 Michael Cusack
4 Richie Gray
5 Alastair Kellock (Captain)
6 Robert Harley
7 Chris Fusaro
8 Ryan Wilson

16 Dougie Hall
17 Gordon Reid
18 Ed Kalman
19 Tom Ryder
20 John Barclay
21 Colin Gregor
22 Troy Nathan
23 Federico Aramburu

REFEREE: Carlo Damasco (FIR).
Assistant Referees: Andrew McMenemy, Iain Bruce (both SRU).
Citing Commissioner : Iain Goodall (SRU).
TMO: Jim Yuille (SRU)

OSPREYS

15 Richard Fussell
14 Tommy Bowe
13 Sonny Parker
12 Andrew Bishop
11 Eli Walker
10 Matthew Morgan
9 Rhys Webb


1 Duncan Jones
2 Mefin Davies
3 Cai Griffiths
4 Ian Gough
5 Ian Evans
6 Tom Smith
7 Joe Bearman
8 Jonathan Thomas (Capt)

16 Richard Hibbard
17 Aaron Jarvis
18 Ryan Bevington
19 James King
20 George Stowers
21 Kahn Fotuali'i
22 Ashley Beck
23 Hanno Dirksen

Weir is class.

Cusiter is real class - if Warriors can keep him fit. Wee Dunkie needs to work on his kicking from hand then the finished article - nearly !!! Still great second half guys - destroyed them

Dot,

agree totally. Cusiter is back. Wee Dunkie nearly there. Barclay all over it when he came on. Harley is an inspiration - he tackled everything. What happened to Big Al Kellock though ?

Calf injury ruled him out earlier in the day

I know asking this question, will be viewed by some as an opportunity for mischief, But can anyone who saw or went to this game tell me if Troy Nathan got on to the field? and if he did whether he did any thing creative? Ta

He did get on. He got away with a rediculous offside at a ruck.

Didn't get to watch the game last night... was having a few at a party.

What wasn't working with the O's last night? how did MMorgan fare?

QuickBall wrote:Didn't get to watch the game last night... was having a few at a party.

What wasn't working with the O's last night? how did MMorgan fare?

He took his try well at the end and kicked a couple of massive penalties. Thought his defence was very suspect and a couple of missed tackles cost the O's.

Quickball - Morgan was excellent at kicking, but he struggled a bit with his defence and kicking for territory - although he wasn't the only one having trouble finding touch. That'll come though. I think the problem with the O's last night was the pointless substitutions just into the second half and the yellow carding of Hibbard from which they didn't recover. I'm not blaming the ref by the way, the O's were lucky not to have Fotuali sent off as well - our poor discipline is an issue which I've moaned about before. The referee looked liked he was going to bin Dewey at one point then changed his mind at the last minute though.

I didn't see when and where Morgan missed touch. His kicking was exceptional with the wind behind him as was Weir's. Morgan has shown so far this season that his kicking game is superior to that of Dan Biggar's and he also has the ability to be a devistating attacker; he hasn't done much of that so far for the Ospreys though. Do you think he'll be released for U20 duty?

Fussel had a shocker - why wouldn't he pass to Bowe?

Fussell is always shocking! It's because he doesn't know how to play rugby at this level yet the Ospreys keep picking him Johnny Vaughton Cai Griffiths style.

Fussel was player of the season last year for the O's. Very consistent. He did have a poor game by his standards. I thought the highlight of the performance was Eli Walker., strong in the tackle , looked sharp in attack and can also kick the ball a fairway when called upon. He is progressing very well.

Well played Glasgow. Excellent second half.

Consistent, if you mean consistently poor. I agree with you on Walker, good to see him included in the European squad.

What impressed me with Morgan against Northampton last week was his constant kicking to the corners when there was nothing on as this pinned Northampton back and the O's were able to challenge the lineout. He didn't seem to try this as much against Glasgow for some reason. Maybe coach's tactics? Maybe less time on the ball? Glasgow's defence was good too so he couldn't get his running game going. Overall, he played OK, some great huge penalty kicks, but he didn't control the game as well as be could have, but this may have been due to tactics or inexperience (although he's controlled games better previously).

Thought that Cusiter and Weir controlled the tempo of the game very well, and that in Hogg and Wlson, Glasgow have two very promising youngster

Asbo - Weir was very good. I was a bit concerned about Cusiter's injury. I hope he's all right.

Looked like a sprain, turned over on it awkwardly I thought? Bit of R.I.C.E and he'll be grand. Glasgow up to 4th in the league - that's a great start for them, and they've still got a handful of players to come back from RWC duty and injury

Yeah I noticed that they're doing well in the Rabo, that can only be good news for Scottish rugby? It's looking very tight at the top of the table. Should make the competition very exciting in the coming weeks.

Unfortunately Edinburgh are compensating in the other direction!

swooptoconquer wrote:Fussel was player of the season last year for the O's. Very consistent. He did have a poor game by his standards. I thought the highlight of the performance was Eli Walker., strong in the tackle , looked sharp in attack and can also kick the ball a fairway when called upon. He is progressing very well.

Well played Glasgow. Excellent second half.

Eli has looked awesome all season, Fussell is prone to bad games, he will play 3 games have a terrible one, a decent one and a very average one, he is a squad player. Hopefully he will fall down the pecking order now the big boys are back.

Weir's kicking seems to be back in the groove after a few poorer performances kicking at goal, at the end of last season. Thats him now nailed 21 of his last 22 shots at goal and his one miss hit the post.

Dot - yeah, he succumbed to the Curse of the Commentator there I think! They were just saying how good his record was when it hit the post...

Getting beaten in Italy early in the season could be the best thing that happened to this Warriors team.

Dorothy_Mantooth wrote:Weir's kicking seems to be back in the groove after a few poorer performances kicking at goal, at the end of last season. Thats him now nailed 21 of his last 22 shots at goal and his one miss hit the post.

Could be a decisive factor as well with Jackson coming back. I think Weir is probably the better kicker of the two.

Good to hear that Cusiter is coming back nicely, and that Stuart Hogg is continuing the good form.

George Carlin wrote:Getting beaten in Italy early in the season could be the best thing that happened to this Warriors team.

We lost at home and should have won the game but for a pretty bad miss with an penalty at the end, Wight has not been seen since in a Warriors jersey.

At the start of the season with so many players away (granted a number of other teams had the same issue) and a large number of the key backup players out injured, I would have settled for 3 wins from our opening 7 games, so to come away with 4 is a bonus, especially when we lost our on paper easiest games.

I think we will still do well to finish in the top six. With DTH out for the season or as good as out for that long, our backs don't look good enough to score enough tries to win us the required games. That said, I have been impressed with Tommy Seymour so hopefully a run of games will allow him to continue to improve. I wonder if one of the many Academy wings assigned to Edinburgh will be loaned to Glasgow, allowing them to get some game time.

For me Lineen continues to do a good job, considering the amount of key players he has lost in the past couple of years.

Dorothy_Mantooth wrote:I wonder if one of the many Academy wings assigned to Edinburgh will be loaned to Glasgow, allowing them to get some game time.

For me Lineen continues to do a good job, considering the amount of key players he has lost in the past couple of years.

Careful what you wish for, they'll probably send you Simon Webster. It's a shame Mark Robertson seems to have fallen away, he was a lively and fast winger, and I read great things about Fleming but he seems to be earmarked for sevens (I'd far rather he was with Glasgow competing against Shaw).

Agreed on Lineen. He's done well with Glasgow. Tough year last year, but he lost some key players the season before and has had to rebuild. Glasgow now look pretty decent, and if Low, Thompson and Welsh can come back and play as we know they can, then Glasgow are a tidy outfit.

At one stage in the match Glasgow were awarded a penalty deep in the Ospreys half. The Ospreys had one of their forwards in the bin, and Glasgow were at that stage 7 points in the lead. They opted to take the kick and extended their lead by 3 points.

Wouldn't you rather take advantage of the extra man in the forwards and take a scrum instead of the penalty if you were the Glasgow captain. I would have, but I seem to be in a minority with my mates who also watched the game.

Whats the concensus here?

Manky-Flanker wrote:At one stage in the match Glasgow were awarded a penalty deep in the Ospreys half. The Ospreys had one of their forwards in the bin, and Glasgow were at that stage 7 points in the lead. They opted to take the kick and extended their lead by 3 points.

Wouldn't you rather take advantage of the extra man in the forwards and take a scrum instead of the penalty if you were the Glasgow captain. I would have, but I seem to be in a minority with my mates who also watched the game.

Whats the concensus here?

I was happy for them to go for the points. Moving more than a score clear and still with the one man advantage took the stuffing out of the O's and from that point there was only one winner.

I can see the value in going more than a score clear.

However, Glasgow have scored the fewest tries so far this season (joint bottom with Dragons) meanwhile Duncan Weir is the current leading point scorer for the season with 98 points.

Perhaps we are too quick to kick the points sometimes.

Manky-Flanker wrote:I can see the value in going more than a score clear.

However, Glasgow have scored the fewest tries so far this season (joint bottom with Dragons) meanwhile Duncan Weir is the current leading point scorer for the season with 98 points.

Perhaps we are too quick to kick the points sometimes.

The ghost of Parks obviously still pervades...

I do agree that Scotland has been too conservative in recent times with penalties, partly down to the fact that CP is such an accurate kicker that the points on offer are usually taken. Parks was similar at Glasgow.

However, you do have to look at the match situation in each instance. On this occasion I think Glasgow got it right. But I do think Scotland and Scottish teams in general too often take the 3 points.

I agree you have to look at the match situation, but I just don't think Glasgow got it right.

Glasgow had the advantage on the scoreboard, advantage of the extra man in the scrum, the advantage of great field position, the advantage of being the team going forward with posession and the penalty advantage already incurred (not to mention home advantage )

What else needs to be in their favour before they risk going for a try?

Glasgow obviously gave the Ospreys too much respect.

funnyExiledScot wrote:I do agree that Scotland has been too conservative in recent times with penalties, partly down to the fact that CP is such an accurate kicker that the points on offer are usually taken. Parks was similar at Glasgow.

However, you do have to look at the match situation in each instance. On this occasion I think Glasgow got it right. But I do think Scotland and Scottish teams in general too often take the 3 points.

Match referee: "Penalty blue. What's your choice?"

Kellock looks at Chris Paterson, then at Graham Morrison who is suggesting that Scotland 'take a quick tap'.

Kellock: "We've no choice but to kick for goal"

Surely you meant just "tap", rather than a "quick tap"??

It's nice to be able to criticise/discuss decisions when you've won though isn't it? Personally I think it could be seen as a positive in a different light. Basically you're saying - we'll take the three here and we will be back in a couple of minutes for three/five more. If you go for the try and don't get it then it gives the opposition a great psychological boost. There's a lot to be said for keeping the scoreboard ticking over.

As covered earlier, this was my first Glasgow game to go and watch live. Great atmosphere actually (probably doesn't come across on telly with the empty stands on the other sides) but my one big criticism would be that the bar closed immediately after the game! I have never ever heard of this happening at any other ground! Do they not want to make money?! I know it's a football ground normally but surely someone could point out that rugby fans don't tend to stab each other? At Leicester you often meet the players after the game when they come down for a drink. Newcastle have a massive party that goes on under the stand, usually with a band. Do you think this "football" attitude will change when Glasgow move to Scotstoun? I suppose it may have been a licensing issue, but it was absolutely bizarre.

Hopefully they are. I sometimes go to Quins games and the bar afterwards is a real highlight, and as you say, a money spinner for the club.

Glasgow are in a position of strength now on the field. They have managed without their internationals exceptionally well. It's a blow losing DTH though, he'd have been a great asset to the backline that has thus far not scored many tries.

screaming, you're obviously good luck, so I would encourage you to go more often, even without the bar for afters!

Or come along to the burgh for a game. We need all the luck we can get. Just don't bother coming along in the new year

screamingaddabs wrote:
As covered earlier, this was my first Glasgow game to go and watch live. Great atmosphere actually (probably doesn't come across on telly with the empty stands on the other sides) but my one big criticism would be that the bar closed immediately after the game! I have never ever heard of this happening at any other ground! Do they not want to make money?! I know it's a football ground normally but surely someone could point out that rugby fans don't tend to stab each other? At Leicester you often meet the players after the game when they come down for a drink. Newcastle have a massive party that goes on under the stand, usually with a band. Do you think this "football" attitude will change when Glasgow move to Scotstoun? I suppose it may have been a licensing issue, but it was absolutely bizarre.

Was the bar not open in the Main Stand (the empty one)? Its usually open for at least an hour after the match, I went straight home on Friday so don't know if it was.

As for making money, I believe all the bar takings inside the ground and in the bar(s) goes to Partick Thistle, as per our lease with them. Another reason why I am happy to move from there, assuming we don't have the same arrangement with Glasgow Council.

I'll probably go along again some time soon - I hope I am a good luck charm, games are always better when your side wins! I'm certainly not a good luck charm for Scotland, they seem to lose plenty when I go see them (hopefully that will continue when they play England - I'm going to that!)

The bar issue is another example of the club's administration getting little things wrong (like the fact virtually no one in the city knows they're even there). I don't expect every ground to have the bar open for hours afterwards, but lots of fans like a quick pint after the game whilst they discuss what they saw. I hope it's down to something beyond their control as opposed to being a deliberate decision. We just walked to Great Western Road and gave a pub there our money instead.

*saw Dorothy's comment at this point*

Dorothy - I didn't know that that was where the bar was, I assumed the main stand alluded to earlier in the thread (before I went) was the one I was in, in the stand where everyone was sat. There was no mention of it that I saw either, so perhaps they just advertised it badly or maybe I'm just a blind idiot (more than likely!).

If the takings go to Partick I suppose they have no real incentive to make people stay - which is a shame. The move to Scotstoun seems better and better to be honest (assuming they get at least some of the takings from the bar).

screamingaddabs wrote:
Dorothy - I didn't know that that was where the bar was, I assumed the main stand alluded to earlier in the thread (before I went) was the one I was in, in the stand where everyone was sat. There was no mention of it that I saw either, so perhaps they just advertised it badly or maybe I'm just a blind idiot (more than likely!).

If the takings go to Partick I suppose they have no real incentive to make people stay - which is a shame. The move to Scotstoun seems better and better to be honest (assuming they get at least some of the takings from the bar).

Sorry I was probably not clear enough. The Main Stand is the old stand that nobody sits in, the bar in there is open before and after games. Usually quite busy after the matches.

funnyExiledScot wrote:Surely you meant just "tap", rather than a "quick tap"??

Further good news for the Weegies - they've extended the contract of up&coming 22-yr old Ryan Wilson. A Scotland U19 and U20 cap, no8 Wilson is the sixth youngster to agree new terms, joining Rob Harley, Ruaridh Jackson, Duncan Weir, Chris Fusaro and Ryan Grant and the former Wasps academy player admitted "it was an easy decision to sign on again". Hope that it puts an appropriate amount of pressure on Johnnie Beattie to up his game

Also good to see that Lineen is identifying the core of his side going forward. Let's hope Richie Gray follows suit. He's clearly one that will ultimately end up at a top European club, and I'd have no issue with that at all, but I do hope he gives Glasgow 2 or 3 years of good service first.