Glasgow Warriors | Exeter Chiefs v Glasgow Warriors
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January 11, 2014

Exeter Chiefs 10 - 15 Glasgow Warriors

Heineken Cup match played at Sandy Park on Saturday January 11th 2014 | No comments

Sean Maitland went over for Glasgow's first try
Glasgow Warriors got back in action with a 15-10 Heineken Cup win over Exeter Chiefs at Sandy Park this afternoon.

The Warriors were 10 points down before tries from Sean Maitland and man-of-the-match Sean Lamont plus a conversion and penalty from Stuart Hogg gave them a 15-10 lead that they held until full-time.

The Warriors' 15-10 victory completes a treble over the Chiefs having won the home tie 20-16 in October and achieved a 29-26 pre-season friendly at Sandy Park.

It sets up an interesting final pool tie for against Toulon at Scotstoun for the Warriors, who can still pip Cardiff Blues for second place.

Fly-half Henry Slade slotted over a 20-metre penalty in the third minute to get the home side moving, and handling errors scuppered the Warriors' hopes of hitting straight back.

Exeter increased their lead after a period of pinning back the Warriors on their own line, which resulted in wing Fetu'u Vainikolo burrowing through a mass of players to cross the whitewash under the posts.

Referee George Clancy referred the matter to television match official Seamus Flannery who, after lengthy deliberation, awarded the try and Slade added the simple conversion.

Yet the Warriors hit back immediately when they took advantage of the Chiefs having two players receiving treatment to create an overlap out wide, with Sean Maitland crossing in the left corner to hand the visitors their first points.

With five minutes of the half remaining the Chiefs defence was tested and breached when Sean Lamont, returning after being sidelined for six weeks with an ankle injury, dotted the ball down in the right corner.

Stuart Hogg added the touchline conversion to put the Warriors ahead for the first time at 12-10, an advantage they took into the interval.

Glasgow started the second period with clear intent, pinning the Chiefs back inside their own 22, and the visitors were rewarded with Hogg landing a 20-metre penalty to increase their lead.

The Chiefs had an opportunity to reduce the arrears minutes later but Slade's long-range penalty attempt drifted just left of the uprights.

Glasgow tried to run the clock down in the late stages while the Chiefs kept searching for more than a losing bonus point, but again the home side were penalised for holding on at the tackle five metres from the line as the match slipped away from them.

The win keeps alive Glasgow's hopes of an Amlin Cup quarter-final place, and head coach Gregor Townsend said: “We knew we had to get a win to stand a chance of getting into the Amlin quarter-finals.

“We didn’t play that well, especially in the second half, but we hung in there and defended really well throughout the 80 minutes, and I think that is our first win in England in European competition.

“Exeter play some of the most ambitious rugby in Europe, and I said to Rob after the game that I felt disappointed for both of us because I expected it to be a really high-quality match, but we got the win so I am happy.”

Referee George Clancy (Ireland)
Attendance 6,978
Man of the Match Sean Lamont
Team
1
Ryan Grant
2
Dougie Hall
3
Ed Kalman
4
Tim Swinson
5
Tom Ryder
6
Robert Harley
7
Chris Fusaro
8
Josh Strauss
9
Henry Pyrgos
10
Ruaridh Jackson
11
Sean Lamont
12
Alex Dunbar
13
Byron McGuigan
14
Sean Maitland
15
Stuart Hogg
Sub
Dougie Hall
Sub
Jerry Yanuyanutawa
Sub
Jon Welsh
Sub
Leone Nakarawa
Sub
James Eddie
Sub
Ryan Wilson
Sub
Nikola Matawalu
Sub
Duncan Weir
Match Substitutions
Off On
Josh Strauss Ryan Wilson
Off On
Dougie Hall Pat MacArthur
Off On
Ed Kalman Jon Welsh
Off On
Ruaridh Jackson Duncan Weir
Off On
Robert Harley James Eddie
Off On
Henry Pyrgos Nikola Matawalu
Off On
Ryan Grant Jerry Yanuyanutawa
Off On
Tim Swinson Leone Nakarawa
Scorers
Sean Maitland Try 
Sean Lamont Try 
Stuart Hogg Conversion
Stuart Hogg Penalty