Glasgow secure bonus point after Italian double

Not that it was easy, they had problems in the first half and for the second game of their Italian trip found themselves having to come back from a first half deficit, but once they turned on the style after the break, there was no living with them.

Afterwards, Gregor Townsend, the head coach, revealed that part of the problem had been health as well as playing related.

"I have to say we had an illness that swept through the camp this week so that 15 of the squad including some of the management were ill. It was a great effort that they got through that and dug deep to play very well in the second half," he said.

"In the first half it was too much individuals trying things, a bit of looseness and too much pace – a bit harum scarum from both teams. They played well, put us under pressure.

"To score 36 in the second half shows the resolve of the players. They came out with a real determination to work hard for the win. I didn't think it was going to be our day when Tommy Seymour had a try disallowed but then we Ali Price did very well to score and we started to get a number of phases going and got the tries."

Maybe it was the pressure that got to them early on. Had the game been played on its original date at the start of January, then Glasgow would have been travelling mentally relaxed and feeling they were under no real pressure against a side that may have a crop of Italian internationals but also have been propping up the Guinness PRO12 table ever since they were founded.

Being played now, it was an entirely different thing. Now, they need get every point going. wins are vital, bonus points likewise. Any slips now and it would be clear in only a few weeks exactly what they would have cost. It is one thing to relax and play fancy rugby when the pressure is months away, a different thing to manage it when the stakes are immediate.

For Glasgow, who had come into the match in fourth place, the immediate reward was the moving up to third. More important; they have yet to play two of the teams that started the day ahead of them, the Scarlets and Connacht, and pulling themselves within two points of the leaders gives them a shout at a home semi final. With the final already scheduled for BT Murrayfield, that would be more than enough reward for a disjointed season where international demands have made continuity tough.

Apart from the sickness, they suffered another blow with Sila Puafisi, the prop pulling out after tweaking a groin muscle in the warm-up, but there was no suggestion that the front row was the cause of Glasgow's early woes with the early scrums and driving line outs all being edged by the Scots. If their handling his had matched the work in the tight, life would have been a lot easier.

The fact was that they were forcing too many passes and even the easy ones were causing trouble, so that the forced ones were a disaster area. Having said which, it was defending kicks that causes the biggest headache, with Zebre crossing early after they had lost the battle for a cross kick and when Zebre regained the line out, nobody could stop Leonardo Sarto, who will join Glasgow next season crossing. In the corner

Glasgow should have been quickly back on terms but made a mess of two scoring chances before they eventually managed to hangs onto the ball for long enough for Fraser Brown to cross for the levelling try.

Kick defence was again the issue when they failed to take an attacking punt and Zebre showed their attacking threat in front of their own fans by launching his a thrilling counterattack with all the offloads sticking as Kayle van Zyl, the full back, and Matteo Pratichetti, the centre, cut free with Guglielmo Palazzini, the scrum half, diving exuberantly over.

After all that there was probably a sense of relief in the Scots ranks that they were not trailing by more at the break. The home side had given them something of a lesson in cutting down the mistakes. They had half a game to show whether they had learned it.

They might have had some doubts when Tommy Seymour thorugh he has scored only to have it chalked off for a knock on way back on the other side of the pitch, but they did not relent and Ali Price, the scrum half brought them level with a sparking individual try that gave Glasgow the confidence to cut loose.

Alex Dunbar was the mainstay, finding the right line for the third try and then putting PEter Horne in for the fourth that secured the bonus point. With the result out of sight, the fight went out of Zebre as they turned into the team making all the mistakes.

Taqele Naiyaravoro, the wing, Jerry Yayanutawa and Horne again were the ones to take full advantage but there were a pile of other players came close. Next week, though, will be a whole lot tougher.

Scorers: Zebre: Tries: Sarto (4), Palazzani (20). Cons: Canna 2.

Glasgow Warriors: Try: Brown (17), Price (45), Dunbar (51), Horne (58, 78), Naiyaravoro (72), Yanuyanutawa (76). Cons: Weir 3, Russell.

Scoring sequence (Zebre first): 0-7, 7-7, 14-7 (half time), 14-14, 14-21, 14-28, 14-33, 14-38, 14-43.

Zebre: K Van Zyl; D Berryman (L Burgess, 62), M Pratichetti, G Garcia (G Bisegni, 52), L Sarto (L Burgess, 43-50); C Canna, G Palazzani; A Lovotti (B Postiglioni, 58), O Fabiani (A de Marchi, 77), D Chistolini (G Roan, 63), Q Geldenhuys (V Bernabòo, 53), M Bortolami (C), E Caffini (F Cristiano, 67), F Ruzza, G Koegelenberg.

Glasgow Warriors: G Bryce; T Naiyaravoro, A Dunbar (M Bennett, 62), P Horne, T Seymour; D Weir (F Russell, 52), A Price (H Pyrgos, 54); G Reid (J Yanuyanutawa, 70), F Brown (P MacArthur, 26, sin bin: 59-69), Z Fagerson (D Rae, 54), L Nakarawa (G Peterson, 62), J Gray (C), R Harley, S Favaro (A Ashe, 65), R Wilson.

Referee: I Davies (Wales)

Attendance: 1,300