Not only were the Glasgow players strong enough to withstand a ten-minute shellacking from Munster before half-time last weekend that effectively won them the match, but they out-muscled Cardiff last night too. One forward drive was only stopped illegally and when the Welshmen attempted the same move themselves they made no headway. Glasgow's players are stronger and fitter than ever and that is down to Mark Bitcon. The conditioning coach arrived last season, moving from what was then the best club side in the Northern Hemisphere, Heineken Cup winners Wasps, to what was then the eleventh best team in the Celtic League, Glasgow. The reason was at least partly down to Kenny Logan, who made the same switch at the same time.
"Kenny had a big influence on my decision," admitted Bitcon. "He can be quite convincing in painting a picture of something even if it's not strictly accurate. But the move just appealed to me; I got a got a good feeling about the place, even if I'm not sure why.
"When you work with the best in the world everything you touch seems to turn to gold. It was a difficult decision moving but I wanted to test myself in a place where the budget wasn't £2m and see if I could still be effective. It's a tough challenge but I wanted to take it on."
Bitcon had something of a culture shock at Glasgow, not least because he found that the players habitually took the weekend off after a match. He now has them in for gentle rehab on Saturday morning. Preparation for next weekend's game is started while the final whistle of the last match is still ringing in the players' ears.
Glasgow and Scotland skipper Jon Petrie testified as to Bitcon's effectiveness and suggested that his influence spread beyond the gym.
"Fitness coaches have to look at lifestyles and coach that as well," said Petrie, currently recovering from shoulder surgery. "There are a lot of young guys in the squad that need that help and Mark is a straight-talking guy who says it as he sees it. He has been a revelation at Glasgow. He is softly spoken but he has a hard streak and I think that the players respect that."
Moving from Wasps to Glasgow was not an obvious choice, but then again Bitcon's career path has meandered around the houses like a drunk at chucking-out time.
He has done so much so early and much of it was only achieved by working for fresh air simply to get his foot in the door; all part of what he calls a "master plan" to get into the elite end of sport.
He played rugby league at school at spent time at Wigan Warriors, but Bitcon was quickly recruited by Craig White, conditioning coach for the Lions in New Zealand, to help Bolton Wanderers secure their place in the Premiership in their first year after promotion.
Bitcon had already had hands-on experience at the very top level when helping test Britain's rowers, including Sir Steve Redgrave, before they departed for success in the Sydney Olympics. But countless phone calls and letters, three years at a local high school and the sort of pestering that would normally result in a restraining order, eventually got the coach a placement that he says kick-started his career, it was a part-time, pre-season post with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
"Some of these guys are on four or five million dollars a year. There were cameras in the gym and 4,000 fans watching us practise every day. It was like being at Man United."
That post ended, but not before Bitcon had added to his ever-increasing understanding of how to do his job. He always assumed that that would be in soccer, where he could probably earn significantly more money, but Bitcon insists that he has no desire to return to the round ball game.
"I think soccer is about five years behind rugby in terms of conditioning. For example, we have been using ice baths for ages but they are only just coming into use in soccer. It all boils down to player access. Rugby coaches have bought into the idea of a strength and conditioning coach." He could add that they have little choice in the matter, "while soccer coaches are still wary".
Bitcon only finds himself in rugby because his Bolton boss, White, made the move to Wasps and obviously proved every bit as persuasive as Logan. After one year as White's deputy, Bitcon became chief strength and conditioning coach to the London club and, with Warren Gatland appointed coach, the team went from seventh in the table to European champions within two years.
"It wasn't really about the very best players like Lawrence Dallaglio and Josh Lewsey," says the man who knows both well. "Those guys would always raise their game, go the extra yard for the team. My job was persuading the 12 or 13 regular Joes to raise their game week in and week out. Something that Glasgow's journeymen have failed to emulate this season."
Hugh Campbell will doubtless spend his Sunday pondering the reasons behind their miserable start to the season but at least their problems appear to be mental rather than the physical variety.
You can read the article in full at The Scotland on Sunday site.