Connacht Rugby v Glasgow Warriors, 2 September

First topic message reminder :

                 
Connacht Rugby v Glasgow Warriors
2 September 2017
KO: 19:35
The Sportsground, Galway

Live on BBC Alba and TG4

Referee: [tbc]
Assistant Referees: [tbc]
Citing Commissioner: [tbc]
TMO: [tbc]

A. Head to Head

31 Played 31
9 Wins 19
19 Losses 9
3 Draws 3
55 Tries 82

B. Form

2017-03-25
Glasgow 35 - 24 Connacht

C. Teams

Connacht Rugby

D Leader, C Kelleher, E Griffin, B Aki, M Healy, J Carty, K Marmion, D Buckley, T McCartney, F Bealham, U Dillane, J Cannon, E Masterson, J Butler, J Muldoon.

Replacements: Shane Delahunt, Peter McCabe, Conor Carey, Sean O'Brien, Eoin McKeon, Conor McKeon, Craig Ronaldson, Tom Farrell.

Glasgow Warriors

R Jackson, L Masaga, A Dunbar, S Johnson, L Jones, P Horne, A Price; J Bhatti, G Turner, Z Fagerson, T Swinson, S Cummings, R Wilson (capt), M Smith, A Ashe.

Replacements: J Malcolm, O Kebble, A Nicol, G Peterson, M Fagerson, H Pyrgos, A Hastings, L Sarto.

Do we really need to rest players after 1 game?? I know it was a complete slug fest of a game but it was the first game of the season...

RDW_Scotland wrote:Do we really need to rest players after 1 game?? I know it was a complete slug fest of a game but it was the first game of the season...

I think it's more that we need to give players some proper game time RDW. 
We also need to try some new combinations. I am still not clear whether Gibbons will take a blindside or an openside role, for example. 
With Fagerson and Fozzy, coupled with Gibbons being hard as nail pie, it's probably the former.

I'm all for squad rotation and trying new combos (Edinburgh's biggest selection failing over the last few years) but talk of resting players is a bit premature IMO!

Rotation does mean that you have to rest some players sooner rather than later. I am sure all the players who are not genuinely injured, who played in this game would be champing at the bit for another crack but some will be stood down and that is no reflection on how they played, or necessarily on how tired or beat up they were. It is more about keeping the match day squad fresh and hungry.

At the moment Rennie probably does not know exactly what his best squad of players, that he wants out for the really big games actually is, such is the competition for places at Glasgow. He will likely have an idea though and will be planning out various combos and rest periods for the whole squad to make sure that the team arrives at that point, the first one being the Euro match in Exeter, in the best possible nick.

Rennie has taken a bit of a shine to Matt Smith in the back row and no wonder - gets on with all the usual unseen stuff and tackles himself to a standstill. Put Gibbens in the mix and Bob Harley fit again and Vuanisi back then we are looking at some real competition in the back row.
We were in the same hotel as the players in Galway and spoke to most post game and on Sunday. They were utterly done in with the effort against a tough Connacht and horrendous weather conditions. Bahtti should be ok as a cut but Tim Swinson was limping although he said he was ok. Johnson & Hastings are obviously out.