Sports

Glasgow Warriors come back from 17 points down to beat Benetton

Carys BevanPublished 26m ago2 min readBased on 7 sources
Glasgow Warriors come back from 17 points down to beat Benetton
Photo by Philippa Rose-Tite on Unsplash

Glasgow Warriors came back from 17 points down to beat Benetton 24-20 in the United Rugby Championship on Saturday. It was a win built on patience and a strong finish, and it keeps Glasgow unbeaten so far this season.

The match was played at Stadio Monigo in Treviso and kicked off at 10:00 GMT. The United Rugby Championship, or URC, brings together professional clubs from Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Italy and South Africa.

Benetton looked the better side in the first half. They led 10-0 at half-time, and the gap grew after a moment of quick thinking. Louis Lynagh stepped in front of a pass from Matthew Urwin, stole the ball and ran in to score in the 42nd minute. Benetton had also let a 14-point lead slip the week before, so the home side knew the margin could vanish quickly.

Glasgow's reply came in waves. Euan Ferrie, Kyle Steyn, Rory Darge and Jare Oguntibeju all crossed for tries, and the visitors took control of the contest. A try is worth five points, and it is the main way to score in rugby union. Benetton still had their own scores, with Federico Zanandrea and Lynagh going over, and Jacob Umaga kicked two conversions and two penalties to keep his side in the game. A conversion is a kick at goal after a try, and a penalty is a kick awarded after a rules offence.

Set-piece battles, the scrums and lineouts that restart play, and the fight for the ball at each ruck, which is the contest that follows a tackle, can decide games like this one. Glasgow's ability to keep the ball and move it wide gave them a route back into the match. It also asked a lot of tired legs in the closing stages.

Glasgow now sit second in the URC table, behind Edinburgh, with three wins and a draw. Benetton are 15th after losing. The gap at the top is not settled yet, and the league is still in its early weeks.

Both clubs have their next games in the coming days. Glasgow face the Lions on 30 October, with kick-off at 15:45. Benetton play Edinburgh on 31 October, with kick-off at 11:00.

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