Following Saturday night’s late URC double-header, here are our five takeaways from Glasgow Warriors’ win over the Lions and Benetton’s victory over Cardiff.

The top line

With Leinster securing a famous win against the Sharks and the Bulls thumping Zebre earlier in the day, Glasgow needed to make a swift response – and they did just that.

Franco Smith’s side got their noses in front after just five minutes, thanks to a try from Nathan McBeth, and they didn’t let go. A quick-fire brace from Jamie Dobie – alongside Adam Hastings’ conversions – pushed the Warriors into a 21-0 lead after 25 minutes before George Horne broke the club record for tries with his side’s fourth of the half.

Things were already pretty sour for the visitors, but it got a whole lot worse on the stroke of half-time. After being reduced to 14, the Lions conceded yet again as Grant Stewart burrowed over for yet another score.

This, though, was the end of the scoring for the night, but Glasgow had already completed a great night’s work.

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But it was the visitors who made the stronger start, pushing out to a 14-3 lead after just 17 minutes thanks to tries from James Botham and Ellis Bevan, with Callum Sheedy banging over two conversions as well.

This lead was short lived, though, as Los Pumas ace Tomas Albornoz hit back with a try of his own, adding to his earlier three-pointer as well. In the final act of the half, the Italians gained the lead for the first time thanks to a penalty try from the maul.

The caginess continued in the second-half, but it looked like Cardiff had done enough to take the points back to Wales after Evan Lloyd crossed the whitewash, but yet again El Mago Nuevo was on hand to ice a penalty and help Benetton squeak over for a vital win.

I’m moving on up, you’re moving on out

The wins tonight for both Glasgow and Benetton have done wonders for their respective URC play-off aspirations, but it’s also pushed Cardiff and the Lions deeper down the ladder too.

Coming into tonight’s action, just nine points separated the Lions down in 13th from fifth-placed Munster, who themselves secured a vital win earlier in the day, so wins of any kind are becoming ever so vital and bonus points are almost becoming a necessity too.

These victories have helped both sides get some much-needed breathing room within the play-off melee, with the Warriors up to second and Benetton now seventh and pulling away from the stragglers beneath them.

Glasgow title hopes

Tonight’s win felt massive for Smith’s side; it felt like a genuine statement win.

We all know what Glasgow can do when on full form, but we saw a different side to them tonight as they were utterly ruthless ball-in-hand. Inspired by the likes of Horne, Jordan, Dobie, Rowe and McDowall, they just seemed to slice through the porous Lions defence like a knife through butter.

On top of that, they seemed to pack a real punch in the tight too, even with the likes of Matthews and Fagerson rotated to the bench. Vailanu was seemingly involved in every breakdown, Stewart was very strong in the contact, and the rest of the pack just rolled up their sleeves and put in the graft to great effect. 

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Even with a rotated side, this was a proper statement win from the Warriors. This is a marker of their true title credentials.

Dios Mio

El Mago Nuevo, Tomas Albornoz, was unplayable tonight as he steered his side to victory. While the efforts of the pack deserve some flowers, after they monstered the Cardiff scrum for large parts of the game, the Argentine ace was the beating heart of his side tonight as he notched a tidy haul of 15 points.

Around his points scoring, he was so classy around the park, with things seemingly just fitting right into place around him to get his side back on the front-foot with expert game management and pinpoint distribution.

He’s had quite a time of it in the past seven months since his breakthrough Rugby Championship, but today was just another example of his genuine world-class ability. A delight to watch.

George Horne – record breaker

A nice bit of the Glasgow win was also seeing Horne break the club record for tries.

Horne has been a real key man for Glasgow since his debut, but he has simply hit new heights in the Smith era and is one of the best nines across the URC as a result. His desire to play with tempo is so important to their attacking identity, but again he also showcases what they are about with some tough graft and how he puts his body on the line – showcased tonight by a grizzly studding to his shin.

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