15 for 10: Glasgow Warriors - an all-decade team
In a decade of unprecedented success for Glasgow Warriors, ten years where rugby found has a home in a city in thrall to football, a mountain of talent has been cultivated, flourished and left for bigger stages – some of it coming back for more.
Glasgow won the PRO12 in 2015 – their first and only major honour – and featured in two more finals and four more semi-finals. They reached the European Champions Cup quarter-finals twice – further than they had ever gone before – and claimed the scalps of Leicester Tigers, Racing 92, Bath, Exeter Chiefs and others as they came of age in the most ruthless club competition of them all.
Gregor Townsend built on the excellent work of Sean Lineen and became Scotland coach. Warriors hired Dave Rennie, a two-time Super Rugby champion regarded as one of the smartest operators in the game, to replace him.
At the start of the decade, they were an unglamorous upstart playing in a jaunty old football stadium with their training pitches, gym gear and offices in another part of the city. By the end of it, Glasgow had everything they needed at their Scotstoun home, they had become a PRO14 giant playing glorious rugby and selling out the ground so prolifically that expansion is a major priority.
Selecting the premier Warriors XV of the past ten years was a fiendishly tough task. There are players who emptied themselves for the jersey and earned little recognition outside of the dressing room who don’t make this team. There are also those whose brilliance was stark but fleeting in the context of the decade.
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The players ultimately chosen were picked not just for their ability, but for the influence of their contributions and the success they helped to deliver. Some are nailed-on starters, others more marginal choices. Plenty will disagree, but that’s all part of the fun. Here goes…
15. Stuart Hogg
Little explanation needed. Hogg will go down as one of the greatest Glasgow and Scotland players of all time. Although Test duty and injuries meant Warriors were deprived of his services for swathes of recent seasons, he remained a hugely important figure.
Hogg’s precious ability to stress teams, hoist Warriors off the ropes with a flash of brilliance, leadership and sheer bloody-mindedness made him an incredibly precious asset. His skill-set is world-class, but his streak of belligerence and refusal to be cowed are almost as telling.
There was a time in 2014 where the full-back grew too big for his boots and almost left the club. Thankfully, he didn’t. Instead, he stuck around, matured, became a PRO12 champion, and eventually earned a fabulous move to Exeter Chiefs. Glasgow came painfully close to sending him off last May with another league medal.
14. Tommy Seymour
Since joining Glasgow in 2011, Seymour’s sustained contribution to the Warriors’ rise has been massive. A terrific finisher, predatory interception specialist and magnificent aerial option, he has scored 45 tries in 139 appearances, famously barrelling over four times in a single match against Leinster in 2016.
He has twice made the league’s dream team and became part of the Hogg-Seymour-Sean Maitland back-three axis that dominated Scotland’s backline under Vern Cotter and then Townsend, scoring a tour-best three tries for the British and Irish Lions in 2017.
The wing announced his Test retirement last month after an excellent 55-cap career. Glasgow will continue to benefit from his quality and nous.
13. Mark Bennett
Over the years, Glasgow have deployed an array of exceptional centres, making these two positions particularly hard to fill. At 13, Richie Vernon, having shifted from the back row, brought ballast and intelligence. The effervescent little Nick Grigg has been one of the most effective players of the Rennie era.
But Bennett deserves this slot for his exceptional ability on both sides of the ball. An Olympic silver medallist and star of the 2015 World Cup, he is quick, direct, agile, and starred for Glasgow during the years where they rose from plucky contenders to rampant champions.
"What am I doing wrong? Is there anything that’s me? What do I need to change?"
– @JLyall93 talks to @alexdunbar13 on the pain of his last year at Glasgow, Huw Jones, Scotland goals & and his rejuvenating move to Brive. https://t.co/i6C5xSaHxI
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) December 2, 2019
12. Alex Dunbar
Graeme Morrison did a load of largely unheralded shovelling. Pete Horne deserves recognition as one of the hardest-working and most savagely lampooned players in Scottish rugby. Few have given as much to the Glasgow jersey.
Sam Johnson should be firmly in the conversation too for his attacking panache and defensive brutality, but due to his luckless injury record, the Australian’s emergence came a little too late in the decade for this XV.
Dunbar, as former defence coach Matt Taylor put it last week, was “like an extra flanker in the backline”. At his best, the centre was a ball-carrying colossus, turnover machine and thunderous tackler.
His summer exit after months of injuries, non-selection and a loan spell was sour for a player whose contribution was so weighty.
11. DTH van der Merwe
The explosive Canadian has a club-record 52 tries in 121 appearances and a knack of scoring in the biggest matches. In 23 top-tier European outings this decade, van der Merwe scored 10 tries. In ten 1872 Cup derbies against Edinburgh, he got four. On Glasgow’s run to the 2015 title, he raced in for a late, match-levelling score against Ulster in the semi-final and bagged two more in the showpiece hammering of Munster.
Van der Merwe in full flight is desperately hard to put down. Even approaching 34, and in the twilight of his second stint at the club, he remains a potent presence. Maitland, Sean Lamont, Max Evans and Leo Sarto all deserve acknowledgement as well, though.
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Finn Russell gives Jim Hamilton and RugbyPass a kicking masterclass at Racing 92’s state of the art facility in Paris
10. Finn Russell
The finest Scottish fly-half since Townsend. An impish Stirlingshire stonemason who came roaring from relative obscurity to the No10 jersey in 2013/14.
Russell conjured a delicious array of kicks and outrageous passes, but the bravery to back his skills under extreme pressure and refusal to be cowed by errors stood out just as much. He had a hand in so many phenomenal Glasgow moments, not least the swooping parabola to van der Merwe for that 2015 semi-final try and touchline conversion to win the game at the death.
Sure, Russell could force things and reach for the miracle play rather than sticking to the system. But Glasgow didn’t beat that out of him. As he developed, his game-management grew in spades. And at Racing 92, he has added dazzling clips to his showreel and cemented himself as one of the best – and arguably the most entertaining – pivots in world rugby.
Although seen as a less glamorous option, Duncan Weir was a canny, prolific alternative to Russell who has thrived at Worcester Warriors, while Ruaridh Jackson produced some fine rugby in both of his stints at the club.
9. Henry Pyrgos
This is a seriously tricky call. Chris Cusiter was a world-class operator. George Horne sniffs out line breaks and tries like a ravenous wild dog. Ali Price has overcome dips in form and attitude and twice been named player of the season. Niko Matawalu did some of his best – and most eye-catching – work in a Glasgow jersey at scrum-half.
Pyrgos had neither the spiky combativeness of Cusiter, nor the searing attack game of Horne or Matawalu or Price, but was an exceptionally clever operator. Townsend backed him to start many of the biggest games.
Across nearly 150 Warriors outings, his skill lay in choosing when to bring in the bruisers or when to unleash the show-stoppers outside him, when to go to the skies or when to have a dart at the fringes. A leader.
Was walking the dog and the amount of rubbish at the side of the road is disgusting. Scotland is one of the most beautiful countries in the world and some dickheads are ruining it @NicolaSturgeon @southayrshire get your finger out pic.twitter.com/WLPl7lmvpa
— Gordon Reid (@GGreid87) December 24, 2019
1. Gordon Reid
A close-run thing between Reid, Scotland’s honorary ambassador to Japan, and Ryan Grant, whose set-piece grunt and class around the paddock ought to have made him a Test Lion in 2013.
Reid pips him for his sustained graft at the heart of the Warriors pack that went on to lift the title and his rambunctious carrying in open prairie. He is probably the most entertaining bloke to pull on a Glasgow jersey in the past decade too – the way he handles press duties, interacts with supporters and generally provides uproariously funny material on his social media are rare.
His is an important tale as well – a working-class kid who pulled pints at an Ayrshire bar in one of the heartlands of Warriors country, an antidote to the posh-boy stereotype that still pervades Scottish rugby. The game needs stories like this. It also needs characters like Reid.
2. Fraser Brown
Brown combines an intense competitiveness, fantastic skill-set and exceptional rugby brain. He gives Glasgow an extremely potent extra option over ball, and the sort of belligerence needed in the intense throes of play-off rugby.
With his carrying, handling and dynamism, the Scotland hooker was particularly key in the run to the Champions Cup quarter-finals of 2017. Getting him tied to the club until 2023 – by which time he will have put in ten years with Warriors – earlier this season was a fine bit of business.
Dougie Hall and Pat MacArthur were also both tremendous servants.
‘We need to have another 20, 30 players that are playing at a high level’
– @15GavinHastings tells @heagneyl what is needed to help @Scotlandteam, his pride in @adamhastings96 and @GlasgowWarriors, and his support for old pals @DoddieWeir5 and Tom Smithhttps://t.co/Z2bYF21t2M— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) December 14, 2019
3. Jon Welsh
Moray Low was a strong contender, while Zander Fagerson is fast becoming a totemic figure for Glasgow and may very well be Scotland’s premier tighthead for the next two World Cups.
But weighing up the scale of their contributions over the decade means Welsh shades it. A colossus in the Warriors front row, his incredible strength and scrummaging were pivotal to Glasgow’s rise in the days of Lineen.
Welsh once gave an opposition pack such a horsing that he was penalised for falling flat on his face, the rival loosehead reversing so quickly that he couldn’t chase his feet fast enough to keep up. The big tighthead left on a wave of tears and glory in 2015.
4. Al Kellock
Glasgow have had technically superior locks to Kellock. He was not the most athletic specimen, not the biggest ball-carrier or the most ferocious tackler, but his role in propelling the club on its rapid upward trajectory cannot be understated.
‘Big Al’ was absolutely instrumental in the transformation of Warriors, instilling and driving a culture of togetherness that remains sewn into the fabric of the place. A leader of men, lineout guru and a PRO12-winning captain who still commands immense respect at Scotstoun. For that, he deserves his place.
Scotland lock Jonny Gray on why he is off to new pastures in England next season https://t.co/EWXAVIPHLh
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 3, 2020
5. Jonny Gray
Leaving out the elder Gray is a big call, especially given his blistering form in the early part of the decade. But Jonny Gray’s outstanding service to Glasgow across nearly eight years in the first team makes him a shoo-in.
Gray is unremitting in his thirst for work, his eye-watering tackle statistics reaching positively freakish levels. Last season, he made 43 in a single match without missing any – a league record. The most recent data – courtesy of Warriors-minded boffin Kevin Millar – indicates that in the past three calendar years, he has missed only three tackles from 452 attempts on PRO14 duty. That’s bonkers!
The big lock is more than just a tackle machine, though. An excellent lineout operator and leader by actions rather than words, his brutality with the ball has grown too. You fancy he could still add layers of destructiveness in that department, and it will be fascinating to see what gains Rob Baxter can orchestrate when Gray joins Exeter Chiefs next season.
6. Leone Nakarawa
We have cheated a bit here by shifting Nakarawa into the back row to get Kellock, Gray and the Fijian in. But let’s be honest, you could stick Nakarawa at inside centre and he would probably do you a turn.
There are precious few in the game who can do what he can. Chuck him a straightjacket, tie him in chains and lock him in a coffin, and you would still fancy Nakarawa to wriggle an arm free and deliver the most startling of offloads.
He brought ballast in the set-piece, athleticism in the lineout, and unique stardust in open prairie. Completely unplayable in the 2015 final, Glasgow’s greatest day, his return to the club this month is a very timely boost.
People are genuinely concerned at where Glasgow Warriors are going
– @JLyall93 looks are what needs to be done to arrest the sad decline of a club whose success has been earned the hard the wayhttps://t.co/tqdM5YW8mU
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 2, 2020
7. Rob Harley
If you are playing Nakarawa at six, and fielding a big-carrying eight, you want a real mongrel to balance a back row heavy on attack but light on scrapping over ball.
John Barclay, Chris Fusaro, Simone Favaro and Callum Gibbins have given Glasgow heaps in the scavenging department. Barclay is the most talented of the lot and has enjoyed the most successful career. Favaro was a cherished kamikaze destroyer but injuries felled him too often.
Warriors have had loose forwards with more star quality than Harley, but you can’t leave him out. Not with his unmatched haul of 225 Glasgow appearances, each one as attritional and relentless as the last.
An insatiable breakdown pugilist, he hits a frightening volume of rucks and takes an obscene degree of physical punishment. Detested by opponents; treasured by his team-mates.
8. Josh Strauss
Strauss had – and still has – his critics, chiefly for his transient presence in games, the perception that he fades out of the battle too often following a rousing carry with a long spell of relative anonymity.
At his best, the hulking South African brought a thunderous – and pivotal – dynamism to the Glasgow team. He could gobble up yards he had no right to make. That’s a skill Warriors have struggled to replace since his departure in 2017.
It is hard to do without Johnnie Beattie’s all-court brilliance, while Ryan Wilson’s hostility, work-rate, leadership and inimitable character make him very tough to omit. Matt Fagerson is also the next big thing.
WATCH: Gavin Hastings, the former Scotland and British and Irish Lions player, surprises a lifelong Glasgow Warriors fan, taking him to the game and giving him a unique tour of Scotstoun
Comments on RugbyPass
Lets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
34 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
34 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to comments