Defending GUINNESS PRO12 champions Glasgow Warriors withstood a resurgent second-half Connacht performance, hanging on at Scotstoun to beat the Irish side 33-32.

After sacrificing their 20-game unbeaten streak at Scotstoun last week, Connacht might have expected a backlash from Glasgow, and they got one, as Glenn Bryce and Scott Cummings went over to give the Warriors a 17-point half-time lead.

However, the visitors scored four second-half tries to reduce the deficit to just one point but despite a mighty effort from Connacht, the champions held on for a famous victory in a thoroughly absorbing game of rugby.

Connacht had much the stronger start, as Glasgow collapsed the second scrum of the match and Jack Carty kicked the subsequent penalty with seven minutes gone.

Rory Clegg evened the scores three minutes later after an infringement, but the Warriors then lost centre Peter Murchie after just 15 minutes, but instead of one of the back replacements, Gregor Townsend put on Hugh Blake, a flanker, to play at outside centre.

Clegg gave Glasgow the lead for the first time after 23 minutes from the tee, and penalised the Connacht front row on the edge of the 22.

After a drab defeat to Scarlets the previous week, the champions appeared to have rediscovered the spring in their step at Scotstoun.

With ten minutes left until half-time, Bryce produce a lovely step just outside the 22, hit a gap and crossed the line untouched to score the first try of the evening, while Clegg maintained his 100% record despite a fierce wind, although he did need the help of the post.

Then just five minutes later, 18-year-old Scott Cummings scored his first try for the Warriors, with the 6ft 7ins second row getting almost impossibly low to wriggle over the tryline from seven metres out.

The impressive Clegg added the extras, and despite Carty closing out the half with a penalty of his own, Connacht went into half-time 17 points behind and with the prospect of playing into the wind for the rest of the game.

Any thoughts of a comeback for the Irish side seemed to be extinguished almost instantly after the break, when scrum-half John Cooney lost his footing attempting to kick clear from a defensive lineout, gifting captain Rob Harley a try.

However, Cooney atoned straight away, converting a strong scrum on the edge of the Glasgow 22 on the blindside thanks to number eight Eoghan Masterton’s pass to make it 30-13.

It heralded a resurgence from the away side, as Glasgow began to miss tackles and leak line breaks.

The scrum too, which had for the most part held admirably against the strength of Connacht before half-time, began to crumble.

Having replaced the entire front row, the Warriors were repeatedly warned about collapsing and the referee was left with no choice but first to sin-bin prop Zander Fagerson, and then award a penalty try to bring the visitors to within ten points.

It quickly became 30-25 as Connacht centre Rory Parata, off another dominant scrum, put a kick in behind and Danie Poolman timed his run perfectly to make it 19 unanswered points.

The momentum swung again as Warriors’ number eight Adam Ashe was held up above the trylin, and the resulting pressure led to a penalty for now 15-man Glasgow in front of the posts for an eight-point lead.

However, it was a brief respite, as seven solid minutes of pressure were finally rewarded, flanker Nepia Fox-Matamua spinning off the back of a maul brilliantly to touch down.

And Carty produced a perfect touchline conversion to move Connacht to within just one point of the Warriors.

In the end though, it wasn’t quite enough, as Glasgow hung on to take a two-faced victory that avenges at least some of the demons of last week’s defeat.

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