Forbes thriving in free-flowing style

• 29 Sep 2022
• Interviews

It was the moment that brought Scotstoun to its feet.

The sight of Glasgow Warriors cutting loose under the Friday night lights was one greeted with rapturous acclaim, rising to a crescendo as Cole Forbes dived into the corner in front of the East Stand to finish off a scintillating 80 metre attack.

It was a try enjoyed just as much by those on the field as it was by those packed into the stands at Scotstoun – just ask the try-scorer himself.

“It was a really good team effort from start to finish,” grinned Forbes as he spoke to glasgowwarriors.org.

“We’d talked all week about playing what was in front of us, and it opened up really well for us from the kick-off.

“Nonz [Sione Tuipulotu] beat his man and got through the gap, then gave it to Seba [Sebastian Cancelliere] who hung it up perfectly for me.

“I just had to run it in and finish it in the corner!”

A relentless attacking performance, allied to a physical shift both with and without the ball, saw the Warriors run in eight tries to claim a 52-24 victory over their Welsh visitors – the first time since February 2020 that the Warrior Nation has seen a half-century at Scotstoun.

Having started both of his team’s URC matches to date at full-back, in addition to wearing the 15 jersey against Ayrshire Bulls in Inverness, it’s a style of rugby that Forbes is relishing.

“Games like the one on Friday night are the types of matches you definitely want to be involved in, because they’re so much fun to play in,” he said.

“We’ve been given the licence to have a crack from our own half if it’s on, and our eyes definitely light up as a back three when you hear that message.

“For me, I’m happy to play absolutely anywhere on the field if it helps the team! I’m happy to go looking for work and get my hands on the ball, whether that’s from full-back or on the wing – or wherever else I’m asked to play! As long as I’m in the matchday 23 I’m happy.”

Another Welsh test awaits the Warriors this weekend, as they travel south to take on the Ospreys in Swansea.

Whilst Saturday’s hosts may still be searching for their first win of the 2022/23 season, there is little danger of Forbes and company underestimating the men in black.

“They’re a really sharp team, especially in the back line,” said Forbes.

“They’ve got a lot of Welsh internationals and a lot of experience across their team – guys like George North and Alun Wyn Jones have been there and done it all.

“We’re going down there knowing we’ll have to be on good form. We’ll need to front up and be physical, carry on at the intensity we showed against Cardiff and back our skills to get the job done.

“We want to build on last week – that’s been the focus this week in training, as well as sharpening up on a few aspects of our game that we identified as being areas we can improve upon.

“Being physical and being sharp with ball in hand are the main facets of our game, and those are the areas we definitely want to showcase again this weekend.”

🍂 Coming up at home this Autumn, we’ve got 2⃣ massive @URCOfficial games for you.

🇿🇦 @BlueBullsRugby – Sat 8 Oct, 7.35pm
🇮🇹 @BenettonRugby – Fri 28 Oct, 7.35pm

🎫: https://t.co/MWHpuCWcVy pic.twitter.com/IXjuad8R5d

— Glasgow Warriors (@GlasgowWarriors) September 28, 2022