Lions tourist makes timely return for Glasgow Warriors

Scotland forward Gregor Brown will make a timely return to action for Glasgow after two months out in their final game of the regular URC season against Ulster in Belfast on Friday.

The versatile lock or blindside flanker has been sidelined with a hamstring injury sustained in Scotland’s 50-40 Six Nations win over France in early March and has not played for Warriors since late January.

Brown will start alongside Alex Samuel in the second row, where Glasgow are still without three other Scotland locks in Scott Cummings, Max Williamson and Alex Craig.

“Gregor has worked hard with our medical and S&C teams to put himself in the best position possible, and he is eager to get back onto the field,” said head coach Franco Smith.

Brown’s return is one of five changes to the Warriors pack, two positional, from the side which beat Cardiff 40-17 last week to end a run of three straight defeats and restore Glasgow to the summit of the URC with one round remaining.

Prop Nathan McBeth, who started two of Scotland’s Six Nations matches, comes in at loosehead for just his fourth Warriors start of the season, taking over from Jamie Bhatti.

Fixture

United Rugby Championship

Ulster

11:45

15 May 26

Glasgow

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Elsewhere, Ally Miller shifts from lock to blindside, with Matt Fagerson moving to openside flanker in place of Rory Darge, who sustained a rib cartilage injury against Cardiff.

Maccenzie Duncan completes a revamped back row with a start at number eight, with Jack Dempsey not involved.

Glasgow are already guaranteed a home quarter-final in the play-offs but are aiming to seal a top-two place which would secure a ‘home’ passage through the knockout stages, even though Scotstoun is not available for any semi-final or final, given it is being taken over for use as a Commonwealth Games venue.

With the Stormers, who are away at Cardiff, only a point behind in second and Leinster, who host Ospreys, only two points adrift in third, Glasgow need to win to guarantee a top-two finish.

Ulster, currently in eighth, are also likely to need to take points from the game to secure a play-off spot, a week out from their European Challenge Cup final date with Montpellier in Bilbao.

“We know that a strong challenge awaits us in Belfast tomorrow night, and it is a challenge we look forward to facing,” Smith added.

Glasgow: J McKay, K Steyn, S McDowall, S Tuipulotu, K Rowe, D Lancaster, G Horne; N McBeth, J Matthews, Z Fagerson, G Brown, A Samuel, A Miller, M Fagerson, M Duncan.

Reps: G Hiddleston, R Sutherland, S Talakai, J Oguntibeju, E Ferrie, S Vailanu, B Afshar, O Smith.