Gregor Townsend, the Glasgow Warriors coach, last night insisted off-field controversies have not affected onfield activities.
While remaining tight-lipped over an incident for which four players - Ryan Grant, Sean Maitland, Ryan Wilson and Rory Hughes - are expected to appear in court, Townsend declared his squad remains fully focused on purely rugby. The charges relate to an altercation outside a takeaway shop in Glasgow's Great Western Road in October, when a 29-year-old man was injured.
The Warriors travelled to Wales yesterday ahead of this evening's RaboDirect PRO 12 game with Neath Swansea Ospreys with a determination to make amends for last weekend's dismal 23-8 reversal to Newport Gwent Dragons.
"It's disappointing anytime you have to have a disciplinary process and people are disciplined," Townsend said. "We have come together and drawn a line under it. We've reaffirmed our responsibilities as a professional club and we will be making doubly sure nothing like that happens again. Our goal is bouncing back after a very disappointing performance last week."
Asked if the incident had disrupted the squad, Townsend responded with a firm: "No."
After opening the PRO12 series with five consecutive wins, the Warriors have lost two of their last three matches since the end of October. Townsend added: "There's a real determination to put things right. The session on Monday was one of the best we've had in my time here. We got the right response.
"If there's anger [about last weekend's result] I hope it's focussed in the right way, whether putting a big tackle in, or clearing someone at the ruck or being more determined to get through a tackle."
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