Glasgow keep the pressure on Leinster
MATCH REPORT: Glasgow Warriors maintained their bid to finish top of the United Rugby Championship with a bonus point 40-9 win over Zebre on Saturday.
Jamie Dobie and George Horne also crossed for the Warriors and flyhalf Ross Thompson converted five of the six tries while the Italians could only muster three Thomas Dominguez penalties at the Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi.
It was a sixth win out of six in 2024 for Franco Smith’s men to keep the pressure on Leinster with a ruthless display.
The opening stages was a battle of attrition with Zebre enjoying the bulk of possession but the Warriors held firm and all the home side had to show for their territorial advantage was a pair of penalties from Dominguez.
Glasgow finally broke through for the first try of the gave with 30 minutes on the clock.
After knocking on the door at the Zebre line the pressure told on the Italians who conceded a penalty which the Warriors kicked into the corner. From the resulting line-out the rolling maul went to work with hooker Hiddleston peeling off the back to crash over and Thompson added the extras.
The Warriors repeated the trick with the clock in the red as a kick to the corner saw another clean line-out win and the maul then pushed the Zebre pack back allowing Hiddleston at the base to drop down over the line for a simple score and a 14-6 half-time lead.
Another Dominguez penalty got Zebre back to within a score as they started the second half on the front foot.
But Glasgow were always the more dangerous side and captain Steyn ran in the third try as he stepped inside a would-be tackler to score under the posts.
The bonus point was secured with 12 minutes remaining as quick ball down the line from a scrum found Steyn in space on the left wing and the Scotland international slide in for the score.
Dobie and Horne then put the icing on the cake with simple scores as a tiring Zebre defence was exposed in a comprehensive victory.
Player of the Match
Glasgow captain Steyn demonstrated his finishing ability with two opportunist tries to help keep his side’s winning run in 2024 going.
Play of the Match
The Warriors’ bonus-point try highlighted that keeping things simple can sometimes be the most effective way of playing. Quick ball from the back of the scrum found its way down the line to Steyn, who was left with space to run unopposed into the corner.
The scorers:
For Zebre:
Pens: Dominguez 3
For Glasgow Warriors:
Tries: Hiddleston 2, Steyn 2, Dobie, Horne
Cons: Thompson 5
Referee: Eoghan Cross (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Filipo Jones (Italy) and Manuel Bottino (Italy)
TMO: Colin Stanley (Ireland)
