Glasgow Warriors v 10bet Lions | Match Preview
29 Oct 2026@topofthemoonGW crunches the numbers ahead of this weekend’s clash, with all the key stats and facts in our latest match preview:
The 10Bet Lions are Glasgow’s visitors at Scotstoun on Friday evening, making their fourth trip to the Warriors’ home ground.
Final tickets remaining for Friday at Scotstoun 🎃 🎟️ https://t.co/4A3BEJPqT6 https://t.co/Hqlnce5AjL
— Glasgow Warriors (@GlasgowWarriors) October 28, 2026
The side from Johannesburg have lost on all three of their previous visits, but they remain a formidable opponent, with a powerful pack and lightning-quick backs.
History of matches at Scotstoun
Both of these teams are renowned try scorers but their first-ever encounter ended up as a real outlier.
Prop Jamie Bhatti crossed after just two minutes – a collector’s item as it was only the second try of his career to that point. That early score did not, however, herald the expected avalanche of five-pointers.
In fact, that was it for tries, with penalties from Ross Thompson and EW Viljoen then completing the scoring.
The other five matches between these clubs at all venues have produced an average of eight tries per game scored (six and half per game at Scotstoun), making this a rather unusual afternoon.
When the Lions made the trip again for a Challenge Cup quarter-final in 2022/23, things were much more as expected.
Four tries for the home side. Three for the visitors. Plenty of running rugby on show from both teams.
It was just a week after Glasgow had dismantled the Dragons with a club record score: 73 points and 11 tries.
The Warriors’ faithful would have hoped for more of the same, but the Lions were made of sterner stuff and stayed in the contest right to the death.
A rare penalty from George Horne gave the home side some breathing space, ensuring there was no panic when the Lions scored their third try with four minutes remaining.
To date, it remains that last penalty kicked by the Warriors in any game against the Lions.
These fixtures have been all about who can attack best and there’s no reason to expect much different this time round.
Standout stat
The Lions’ most recent visit was the 13th time a South African side had played at Scotstoun – and it brought a 13th win for the Warriors.
The run ended a few weeks later against the Bulls, but Glasgow’s home record against South African opposition remains impressive, including two victories over the Pretoria side during the 2025/26 campaign.
As things stand, the Warriors have won 17 of their 18 games at Scotstoun against South African sides in league and European competitions.
Last time out
In March 2025, the Warriors took full advantage of the conditions on a cold night at Scotstoun, playing in the teeth of gale-force winds.
It wasn’t quite as intense as the combination of heat and altitude that Glasgow have suffered through when visiting Johannesburg, but the howling wind and low temperatures in play at Scotstoun would have been a decidedly novel experience for the Lions.
With a westerly wind giving a significant advantage to the team attacking towards the East Stand, Glasgow made the most of the conditions to establish an extraordinary 42–0 half-time lead.
Nathan McBeth crossed with just five minutes on the clock to settle the nerves. It was the fourth consecutive match that he had scored in – a record for a Glasgow prop.
George Horne also had a milestone score, with his 55th career try moving him ahead of DTH van der Merwe to stand alone as the club’s record try scorer.
Turning at the break to face gusts of wind that were reportedly reaching 50 miles an hour, it was a completely different game.
The West Stand must have felt a little short-changed after the East Stand had been able to welcome six converted tries!
However, nilling the Lions when the South African side had the benefit of that wind for the full second half was an impressive achievement.
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It was the fifth time that Glasgow held an opponent scoreless at Scotstoun, having previously managed this against Zebre (54–0 in 2014), Edinburgh (17–0 in 2017), Kings (50–0 in 2019) and Benetton (37–0 in 2022).
Friday’s match is unlikely to be shaped by such extreme conditions, but Glasgow will still be looking to build towards a complete 80-minute performance.
Against a Lions side with the power and pace to punish any lapse, the Warriors will want to show they can maintain their intensity from the opening whistle to the final one.
