McKay ready for Stormers battle

BKT United Rugby Championship, Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban, South Africa 19/10/2024 Hollywoodbets Sharks vs Glasgow Warriors Glasgow Warriors' Josh McKay arrives Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Steve Haag Sports/Darren Stewart

The full-back – who currently leads the Warriors for metres made in the BKT United Rugby Championship in 2024/25 – was once again at the heart of the action in last weekend’s clash with the Hollywoodbets Sharks in Durban, a fixture that the 27-year-old believes will stand his team-mates in good stead despite falling to defeat.

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“It was obviously good to salvage a couple of bonus-points at the end of the game last Saturday, but we’re still disappointed we didn’t come away with more,” McKay told glasgowwarriors.org.

“We felt like we showed enough in the 80 minutes that, on another day, we could have come away with all five points rather than just the two.

“We’ve just got to keep the momentum going that we built in the closing stages in Durban last week, not sit back and get stuck into this Saturday.”

With the hard pitches and fair weather suiting McKay’s all-action style, its perhaps not surprising to hear the full-back underline his enthusiasm for touring South Africa, as Glasgow’s double-header comes to a close this weekend.

“Coming to South Africa is always awesome,” he said.

“I was fortunate enough to do a few South African tours when I was a bit younger back when I was playing Super Rugby, and its still a great tour to be a part of.

“To come away with the boys, come together as a group and sharpen up in some great weather is always a real privilege.”

Before the flight back north, however, the not-so-small matter of a clash with the two-time finalists awaits this weekend, as Danie Craven Stadium plays host to the latest in a long line of electric clashes between the Warriors and the Stormers.

McKay expressed his admiration for the Western Province-based squad, and insists his fellow Warriors will be well-prepared for the challenge that lies in store this weekend.

“The Stormers are a quality outfit,” said the full-back.

“They’re a great team filled with absolute superstars, and we know that the South African franchises are always really tough tests in South Africa.

“We know they’ll probably bring a bit more line speed and have a lot of X-factor players who like to pop up and get involved, so we’ll have to be vigilant this week.

“We don’t want to go away for a month and have our last result go down as a loss. That would properly sting for those few weeks, so its up to us to go out there and put in a performance that we know gives us the best shot of getting the right result on Saturday.”

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