Nine points and gave them nothing: Glasgow Warriors skipper enjoys landmark game as dad flies in

Appointing Steyn captain was one of the first decisions Franco Smith made when he arrived at Scotstoun in summer 2022 and it was also one the coach’s shrewdest.

The Scotland winger leads by example and while Saturday’s game was no classic there was always the feeling that Steyn’s side would come out on top.

They held a fragile 7-3 lead from the 31st minute to the 75th but late tries from George Horne and Jamie Dobie - his second of the game - took the game out of Edinburgh’s reach. Having taken the first leg 24-12 at Hampden, the Warriors were 45-15 winners on aggregate, and the 30-point margin is the biggest for a two-game series since the 1872 Cup was revived and rebranded in 2007.

In the previous two seasons, Edinburgh have responded to first-leg defeats with narrow victories at Murrayfield but they never looked like breaching the Warriors’ try-line on Saturday.

Steyn’s father clocks up the air miles

“We haven't come here and won in the last two years, so to take nine out of ten points and give them nothing, we’re pretty happy with that,” said Steyn.

“We probably didn't feel like we played very well, but chuffed we got it done.”

Just like at Hampden seven days previously, Edinburgh put in a huge defensive effort but offered little in the way of creativity and chances were few and far between for the 38,179 inside Murrayfield. It was a bumper crowd but entertainment was in short supply.

“Edinburgh were really good at slowing down our ball and making sure we couldn't get going,” added Steyn. “It felt like we got dragged into the derby, the one-on-one battles and that kind of played into their hands a wee bit. It's frustrating more than anything that we showed in the last ten minutes that we had the game to break them down.”

Adam Hastings’ vision and well executed cross-kick created a first-half try for Dobie but Glasgow had to wait until five minutes from time for their second try. Having battered the Edinburgh line for phase upon phase, Horne found a gap to go over. Dobie - the man of the match - got his second soon after, chasing his own kick to score in the corner after Matt Fagerson had won a turnover.

The occasion was made more special for Steyn because his family was all there for his landmark appearance, including his baby daughter Bella and father Rory who flew in from South Africa for the match.

“My mum jokes about the fact that I've got no inheritance left because he's spent it all on flights,” said Steyn. “But it’s been worth it. It's been a mainstay across my career - no matter where I've played in the world, he's been on the sidelines.”

More added to the Edinburgh injury list

While Glasgow take the points and the plaudits, Edinburgh are left empty-handed and short of players and inspiration. Their injury list now stretches to 20-plus, with Dylan Richardson (ribs) and Lewis Wells (failed HIA) the latest casualties. Duhan van der Merwe and Boan Venter were both meant to be involved on Saturday but were withdrawn before kick-off due to hip and neck issues, respectively.

For the second match in a row against Glasgow, they offered little attacking threat and their only points came from a fifth-minute penalty from Cammy Scott. It’s now five defeats in seven URC games this season for Edinburgh who sit in 11th place, four points adrift of the play-off positions.

“It was very frustrating,” said James Lang, the Edinburgh centre. “There was a 12-point deficit [after the first leg]. We knew what we needed to do. First and foremost we needed the win for the league, and we didn’t get that.

“I felt we were pretty dominant for large parts of that game. We were getting into good positions, but we just weren’t accurate enough. It was skill errors, individual errors, which let us down and really stopped our momentum.

“We know how dangerous they are as a team, and they capitalised [on those mistakes] in the last 10 minutes and the game kind of went away, which was very tough to take.”

It’s Italian opposition next for both teams this Saturday, with Edinburgh travelling to Treviso to take on Benetton and Glasgow hosting Zebre at Scotstoun.

Teams and scorers

Scorers: Edinburgh: Pen: Scott. Glasgow Warriors: Tries: Dobie 2, Horne. Cons: Hastings, Horne, Lancaster.

Yellow card: Fraser (Glasgow, 50min)

Edinburgh: W Goosen; D Graham, M Currie, J Lang, L Wells (J Brown 26); C Scott (R Thompson 57), B Vellacott (C Shiel 64); P Schoeman (M Jones 68), H Morris (J Blyth-Lafferty), P Hill (O Blyth-Lafferty 68), G Young (C Hunter-Hill 64), G Gilchrist, L McConnell, D Richardson (F Douglas 27), M Bradbury.

Glasgow Warriors: O Smith; K Steyn, S McDowall, S Tuipulotu, J Dobie; A Hastings (D Lancaster 61), G Horne (B Afshar 76); P Schickerling (N McBeth 48), J Matthews (G Hiddleston 48), S Talakai (Z Fagerson 48), A Craig, A Samuel (S Cummings 12-22; 48) M Fagerson, A Fraser (R Darge 61), J Dempsey (G Brown 48).

Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU).

Attendance: 38,179.