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December 04, 2005

Glasgow Warriors 46 - 6 Edinburgh Gunners

GUINNESS PRO12 match played at Firhill on Sunday December 4th 2005 | 5 comments

John Beattie impressed in this afternoon's thrilling encounter at Firhill
Glasgow kicked off their residency of Firhill Stadium with an emphatic defeat over rivals Edinburgh Gunners, in an exciting encounter, which acted as a perfect house-warming.

However, the Gunners were clear favourites before the game - knowing a bonus-point win would hoist them to the head of the title race.

But Glasgow - inspired by young John Beattie - snatched the glory with a great performance, snuffing out the capital challenge with a four-try burst before the break.

John bagged one and had a big hand in three of the counters, sending Simon Taylor a reminder that he will be no automatic choice for Scotland's number eight berth in the Six Nations Championship.

Glasgow now look ahead to their Heineken Cup trip to Bath at the weekend with fresh confidence - while devastated Edinburgh must somehow regroup before taking on European champions Toulouse at Murrayfield.

The hosts looked the hungrier outfit in the scrappy opening exchanges with back-row pair Steve Swindall and John forcing back the visiting markers.

But it was the Gunners who looked more penetrative and Argentinian Test star Francisco Leonelli almost squeezed into space past Scotty Lawson on the touchline.

Edinburgh edged in front with a confidently struck 25-metre penalty by veteran stand-off Duncan Hodge after illegal side-on entry to a ruck.

And before Hodge could take his pot at goal, referee Alan Lewis had to administer a stern warning to Gunners prop Allan Jacobsen and home centre Scott Barrow for scrapping off the ball.

Glasgow wasted no time in hitting back, Colin Gregor thumping over a huge kick from close to halfway when David Callam failed to roll away from the tackle scene quickly enough.

The flurry of penalties continued as Hodge struck again following dissent by Kevin Tkachuk - however the Warriors seized the initiative with a superb touchdown by John Beattie.

Frantic Gunners defence stemmed the initial wave of attacks, mainly from the pack. But with men committed to the close-quarter action, the cover at the back was fatally stretched when Scott Barrow's huge pass was weighted and directed perfectly for John Beattie to power over in the corner.

Even better was to come for the home troops five minutes later when Canadian international ace T-Bone did his dodgem car impression, bouncing off three challengers on his way to glory under the crossbar - giving Colin Gregor a formality of a conversion.

And the Glasgow fans could scarcely believe their eyes when their heroes carved out a third score in the build up to the interval.

Under heavy pressure, old stager Hodge was too slow to clear the danger - giving flanker John Barclay a crucial split second to dive in for a chargedown.

Gregor reacted like lightning to pounce for the first touch behind the posts, adding the extra points for good measure and giving his side a 16-point cushion.

Then to compound the misery of Hodge, he was wide with a snap drop goal attempt from dead in front of the target.

There was yet another alarm for the former Scotland stand-off when Colin Gregor charged down another laboured clearance, but this time Simon Webster back-tracked to prevent the try.

Warriors shook off the frustration to effectively claim the contest with a top-notch touchdown in stoppage-time.

The impressive Beattie lured three markers before freeing Graydon Staniforth with a brilliantly-executed All Blacks-style offload in contact.

Graydon was left with a stroll to the target before Colin Gregor clipped over the kick to increase the gap to 23 points.

Glasgow continued where they had left off with Colin landing a penalty immediately after the restart.

Then the Beattie-Staniforth double-act struck again, the latter completing his double and Colin converting, before Graeme Morrison rounded off the rout.

This time the accurate kick was executed by substitute Dan Parks.

Referee Alan Lewis (Ireland)
Attendance estimated 2,500
Man of the Match Official Man of the Match went to John Beattie, and it's hard to argue with the decision, although other contenders would have included Kevin Tkachuk, Tim Barker and Scott Barrow
Team
1
Euan Murray
2
Scott Lawson
3
Kevin Tkachuk
4
Tim Barker
5
Craig Hamilton
6
Steve Swindall
7
John Barclay
8
John Beattie
9
Graeme Beveridge
10
Colin Gregor
11
Rory Lamont
12
Scott Barrow
13
Graeme Morrison
14
Hefin O'Hare
15
Graydon Staniforth
Sub
Fergus Thomson
Sub
Lee Harrison
Sub
Dan Turner
Sub
Gregor Hayter
Sub
Sam Pinder
Sub
Dan Parks
Sub
Andrew Henderson
Match Substitutions
Off On
Graeme Beveridge Sam Pinder
Off On
Euan Murray Lee Harrison
Off On
Steve Swindall Gregor Hayter
Off On
Colin Gregor Dan Parks
Off On
Scott Barrow Andrew Henderson
Off On
Scott Lawson Fergus Thomson
Scorers
14 minsColin Gregor Penalty
24 minsJohn Beattie Try 
27 minsKevin Tkachuk Try 
27 minsColin Gregor Conversion
34 minsColin Gregor Try 
34 minsColin Gregor Conversion
40 minsGraydon Staniforth Try 
40 minsColin Gregor Conversion
41 minsColin Gregor Penalty
58 minsGraydon Staniforth Try 
58 minsColin Gregor Conversion
75 minsGraeme Morrison Try 
75 minsDan Parks Conversion
Posted by Big Blue on December 4, 2005 09:04 PM | Reply to this comment

It was quite a pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Posted by jmg on December 4, 2005 09:09 PM | Reply to this comment

Congratulations to all Glasgow players. Great performance with total effort by all.
Great venue at Firhill, with bar facilities before and after the game.
Firhil staff were very helpful during the afternoon and certainly helped make it a good day.
Looking forward to next home game and chat in the bar, when more spectators will be aware of its whereabouts.

Special mention to the new announcer. Great job. Clear and concise with the information required. Keep it going.

Posted by fin on December 4, 2005 10:19 PM | Reply to this comment

Great afternoon. Great rugby, great facilities and atmosphere. Glasgow should consider staying at Firhill. Improve the coffee and everything will be perfect!

Posted by sunday5 on December 6, 2005 08:22 PM | Reply to this comment

What a great afternoon and a faultless performance. The first time i have seen a Warriors side take a standing ovation and a well deserved lap of honour. Well done lads. Keep it up!
R.J.B

Posted by Alistair on December 7, 2005 11:29 AM | Reply to this comment

There was the Celtic League game agaisnt Llanelli about 5 year ago to get us into the knock out stages. I couldn't feel my hands by the end of it, as it was both freezing cold and pissing down, but they got a standing ovation from me!

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