Boroughmuir Bears 26-17 Glasgow Warriors A

Glasgow narrowly lose out to the Bears after making a fierce comeback in the second half.

A bright crisp afternoon at Meggetland set the scene for Round 1 of the FORSOC Super Series. Glasgow Warriors A faced Boroughmuir Bears in the first-round clash.

The opening minutes were full of fast ball, going through the phases for both the Warriors and Bears. Dominant tackles made by Ben Salmon and a ball kicked by Bears’ George Paul missing touch gave Glasgow the upper hand in the first ten minutes.

Bears struck back but Glasgow’s defence was impenetrable as they held up the Bears try. Ten minutes in, Bears gave away a penalty allowing Richie Simpson to kick the ball into touch deep into the Bears’ half. Capitalising on the opportunity, Glasgow scored the first points of the game. Jonny Morris soared over the line with a fantastic try out wide in the lefthand channel. Simpson’s conversion collided with the post, taking the score to 0-5 to Glasgow.

The Bears woke up and played the ball with speed. Going down the wide channels and cutting in, the hosts scored three tries in the first half. Two tries were scored by Bears’ skipper Scott Robeson and the third by winger Matt Reid.

The Warriors were down at half time 21-5 and needed an injection of pace in the second half.

Glasgow did just that: biting back against the bears, Glasgow played with flare and aggression. Driving through fast phases and making tough tackles against the hosts, Glasgow eventually got on the upper hand. The momentum with the visitors, Ben Afshar broke the Bears defensive line 45 minutes in. Taking the Warriors 10 metres out from their try line, Afshar injected the pace Glasgow were looking for.

A fantastic try was stemming from the skipper’s break. Callum Smyth drove over the line from close range. Smyth’s score took the score to 21-10.

Bears got back on the offensive, chasing down another score. But the impenetrable Glasgow defence held up a Bears try. The hosts didn’t let up on the attack, diversifying their offence with a chip and chase. Simpson successfully gathered though in Glasgow’s 22, dousing the flames of Bears’ attack.

Simpson ran 30 metres up the field, dodging defender after defender. His gained metres led to Glasgow being awarded the penalty. Line out success from seven metres out gave Glasgow another scoring opportunity. Simpson skipped through the defensive line, scoring the Warriors third try. Afshar bagged the conversion.

Despite a much-improved second half from Glasgow, Bears scored once more with Matt Reid getting his second try of the match. The waves of attack from Glasgow in response wasn’t enough to combat the Bears.

Final score: Boroughmuir Bears 26-17 Glasgow Warriors A.