IT WAS PREDICTABLE enough. Leinster fielded a desperately young team and could not handle a first-half Glasgow purple patch that produced a flurry of tries and enough of a cushion to survive a second-half Irish fightback.
Leinster always knew this was going to be a tough task with 13 of the players who had won at the same ground in the European Champions Cup two weeks ago missing, most in the Ireland camp, so they could not even have dreamed of the start they got.
A long jinking run from new boy Jordan Larmour got them to within a few feet of the home line and Jamison Gibson-Park did the rest from short range. Less than four minutes on the clock and already ahead.
Glasgow levelled through scrum half George’s Horne, partnering his brother Peter for the first time, but that did nothing to shake young Leinster’s confidence and they were quickly back in front, this time Rory O’Loughlin, the centre, taking advantage of a huge gap on the right.
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That only woke Glasgow, however, as Niko Matawalu, the Glasgow wing started to find space. He had almost created a score straight form the kick off but it was only a couple of minutes before he was back at it, this time breaking from his own half in a move finished by Nick Grigg, the centre.
This time there was no riposte from Leinster, who had flanker Jordi Murphy sin binned for preventing a quick penalty and gave away two tries, the first a short-range effort from George Horne, the second Grigg finishing a 90-metre break from Matawalu, while he was off.
A further home penalty seemed to have put the game out of reach but Leinster refused to lie down and started to turn the screw up front, winning a string of penalties to give them a series of strong attacking positions. They kicked penalties to the corners for driving mauls but in the end it was when they released the ball to the backs that they found the space to score with Adam Byrne holding off two tacklers to squeeze into the corner.
By now they were dominating the game territorially but struggling to break the determined home defence even through the Scots had another player, Alex Dunbar, the replacement centre, sent to the sin bin for a lifting tackle and could not manage another score.
Glasgow Warriors: Tries: George Horne 2, Nick Grigg 2. Conversions: Peter Horne [4 from 4]. Penalties: Peter Horne [1 from 1]
Leinster: Tries: Jamison Gibson-Park, Rory O’Laughlin, Adam Byrne. Conversions: Ross Byrne [3 from 3]. Penalties: Ross Byrne [0 from 1] Glasgow Warriors: Ruaridh Jackson; Lelia Masaga (Leonardo Sarto, 70‘), Nick Grigg, Sam Johnson (Alex Dunbar, 55‘, sin bin: 60-70), Niko Matawalu; Pete,Horne, George Horne (Henry Pyrgos, 55‘); Jamie Bhatti (Alex Allan, 58‘), George Turner (Pat MacArthur, 58‘), D’Arcy Rae (Adam Nicol, 69‘), Tim Swinson, Scott Cummings (sin bin: 45-55), Rob Harley, Callum Gibbins (C) (Lewis Wynne, 72‘), Matt Fagerson (Matt Smith, 51‘)
Leinster: Jordan Larmour; Adam Byrne, Rory O’Loughlin, Conor O’Brien ( Hugo Keenan, 72‘), Dave Kearney; Ross Byrne (Cathal Marsh, 72‘), Jamison Gibson-Park ( Nick McCarthy, 51‘); Ed Byrne ( Peter Dooley, 51‘), Seán Cronin (Richardt Strauss, 58‘-64’), Michael Bent ( Andrew Porter, 51‘), Ross Molony (C), Mick Kearney ( Dan Leavy, 35‘), Scott Fardy, Jordi Murphy |(sin bin: 16’-26’, Josh Murphy, 69‘), Max Deegan.
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Leinster's young guns fall short after a flurry of early Glasgow tries
Glasgow Warriors 31
Leinster 21
Lewis Stuart reports from Scotstoun Stadium
IT WAS PREDICTABLE enough. Leinster fielded a desperately young team and could not handle a first-half Glasgow purple patch that produced a flurry of tries and enough of a cushion to survive a second-half Irish fightback.
Leinster always knew this was going to be a tough task with 13 of the players who had won at the same ground in the European Champions Cup two weeks ago missing, most in the Ireland camp, so they could not even have dreamed of the start they got.
A long jinking run from new boy Jordan Larmour got them to within a few feet of the home line and Jamison Gibson-Park did the rest from short range. Less than four minutes on the clock and already ahead.
Glasgow levelled through scrum half George’s Horne, partnering his brother Peter for the first time, but that did nothing to shake young Leinster’s confidence and they were quickly back in front, this time Rory O’Loughlin, the centre, taking advantage of a huge gap on the right.
That only woke Glasgow, however, as Niko Matawalu, the Glasgow wing started to find space. He had almost created a score straight form the kick off but it was only a couple of minutes before he was back at it, this time breaking from his own half in a move finished by Nick Grigg, the centre.
This time there was no riposte from Leinster, who had flanker Jordi Murphy sin binned for preventing a quick penalty and gave away two tries, the first a short-range effort from George Horne, the second Grigg finishing a 90-metre break from Matawalu, while he was off.
A further home penalty seemed to have put the game out of reach but Leinster refused to lie down and started to turn the screw up front, winning a string of penalties to give them a series of strong attacking positions. They kicked penalties to the corners for driving mauls but in the end it was when they released the ball to the backs that they found the space to score with Adam Byrne holding off two tacklers to squeeze into the corner.
By now they were dominating the game territorially but struggling to break the determined home defence even through the Scots had another player, Alex Dunbar, the replacement centre, sent to the sin bin for a lifting tackle and could not manage another score.
Glasgow Warriors: Tries: George Horne 2, Nick Grigg 2. Conversions: Peter Horne [4 from 4]. Penalties: Peter Horne [1 from 1]
Leinster: Tries: Jamison Gibson-Park, Rory O’Laughlin, Adam Byrne. Conversions: Ross Byrne [3 from 3]. Penalties: Ross Byrne [0 from 1]
Glasgow Warriors: Ruaridh Jackson; Lelia Masaga (Leonardo Sarto, 70‘), Nick Grigg, Sam Johnson (Alex Dunbar, 55‘, sin bin: 60-70), Niko Matawalu; Pete,Horne, George Horne (Henry Pyrgos, 55‘); Jamie Bhatti (Alex Allan, 58‘), George Turner (Pat MacArthur, 58‘), D’Arcy Rae (Adam Nicol, 69‘), Tim Swinson, Scott Cummings (sin bin: 45-55), Rob Harley, Callum Gibbins (C) (Lewis Wynne, 72‘), Matt Fagerson (Matt Smith, 51‘)
Leinster: Jordan Larmour; Adam Byrne, Rory O’Loughlin, Conor O’Brien ( Hugo Keenan, 72‘), Dave Kearney; Ross Byrne (Cathal Marsh, 72‘), Jamison Gibson-Park ( Nick McCarthy, 51‘); Ed Byrne ( Peter Dooley, 51‘), Seán Cronin (Richardt Strauss, 58‘-64’), Michael Bent ( Andrew Porter, 51‘), Ross Molony (C), Mick Kearney ( Dan Leavy, 35‘), Scott Fardy, Jordi Murphy |(sin bin: 16’-26’, Josh Murphy, 69‘), Max Deegan.
Referee: Stuart Berry (SARU)
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