Glasgow 36-18 Stormers: Three things we learned
Darge responds to Lions disappointmentRory Darge told BBC Scotland on last week's Scotland Rugby Podcast he's using the disappointment of missing out on selection for the British and Irish Lions as motivation. It certainly looked that way against the Stormers.Darge was outstanding. Time and again he chopped down the big South African ball carriers and stymied their momentum by being his usual menace at the breakdown.He led the way in the tackle charts with 23 and threw in two turnovers for good measure.He is consistently good at the best of times, but a Rory Darge with a point to prove? That's one heck of a weapon for Glasgow in this United Rugby Championship play-off run-in.Jordan shows his classTom Jordan is another player who can feel slightly aggrieved at missing out on the Lions after his sterling Six Nations performances for Scotland.Warriors fans still feel aggrieved they will not see Jordan at Scotstoun next season, with the fly-half heading for Bristol this summer.Four clean breaks, eight defenders beaten and 100m made tells only part of the story of Jordan's performance.He was constantly testing the Stormers defence, refusing to be put down in the tackle, and the way he pumped up the crowd in key moments demonstrated a ferocious will to win.Jordan will be a seismic loss to the team and the club, as a player and a character. Glasgow will hope he has one, ideally two, big performances left in him.Things to work on for semi-finalIt was a rather curious game in some respects.Warriors lost the penalty count 16-4. Normally a disparity like that means the team on the wrong end is also on the wrong end of the result.A combination of five excellent tries, some titanic goal-line defence and the Stormers sloppy handling meant being on the wrong side of the officials did not prove costly, but Glasgow will need to sort that out in the semi-final against Leinster.The scrum, in the absence of Zander Fagerson, also creaked at various points and after the game Franco Smith identified the set piece as an area that must improve before next weekend.There is a definite sense, however, that the defending champions are starting to show what they're all about.
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The Independent
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The Guardian
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Daily Mail
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