Tonight isn’t terminal for us, but it’s tougher now for sure – Rennie

14 Dec 2019

Glasgow Warriors Head Coach Dave Rennie believes his side will refuse to dwell on tonight’s defeat to La Rochelle, as the club prepares for a crucial spell of matches in both the Guinness PRO14 and Heineken Champions Cup

In dreadful
conditions under the floodlights, it was the French side that claimed all four
points at Scotstoun as two tries late in the opening period proved decisive for
the visitors.

Despite the
Warriors throwing everything at their opponents in pursuit of victory, a losing
bonus-point was all that Rennie and company were left with to show for their
efforts as a late red card for Matt Fagerson capped a disappointing evening for
the club.

“We conceded
a couple of soft tries and didn’t deal with the wind,” said the Glasgow boss.

“Their first
try, where they got the ball back after the wind blew their penalty back, saw
them get the ball back and go through multiple phases. Their second try was
poor fringe defence from us, and they found some space and scored.

“I thought
we played pretty well in the second half, but we’ve got to convert our
opportunities better than we did tonight.

“Matt’s
trying to fend and he goes in with a bit of a forearm. You can’t argue with the
decision, you’ve just got to accept it.”

The result
leaves the Warriors on nine points in Pool Two, with Exeter and Sale battling
it out at Sandy Park tomorrow in the group’s remaining round four fixture.

“We’re
trying to throw a lot of aerial balls and trying to score immediately, instead
of going through the phases,” said Rennie.

“It’s great
when they come off, but going multi-phase allows us to ask a few more
questions.

“We probably
need to beat both Exeter and Sale to qualify the way a couple of groups are
looking – you’re going to need some big numbers to get through, 19 points or
something is looking like the target. Tonight isn’t terminal for us, but it’s
tougher now for sure.”

The opening
clash of the 1872 Cup now looms large for the Warriors, as Rennie’s men take on
Edinburgh at Scotstoun next weekend. It’s a fixture for which the club will be
ready and raring to go, insists the Glasgow Head Coach.

“We’ll be up
for next weekend,” said Rennie.

“We’re
hugely disappointed about tonight, but we’ve got to move on.

“We’re going
into a period of tough games in the Guinness PRO14 and we’ve got to be up for
them now.”