Glasgow warriors coach Gregor Townsend last night admitted that his side will have to improve their discipline after watching them pick up two yellow cards in the course of their 19-11 loss to Toulouse at the Stade Ernest-Wallon.
Glasgow warriors coach Gregor Townsend last night admitted that his side will have to improve their discipline after watching them pick up two yellow cards in the course of their 19-11 loss to Toulouse at the Stade Ernest-Wallon.
The Warriors went into the European Champions Cup clash with an unbeaten record, but the 30 penalties they conceded over the course of their wins against Montpellier and Bath was also a higher total than any other team in the tournament.
Glasgow lost yesterday??s penalty count 14-5 against the four-times European champions, but the greatest damage was done while fly-half Finn Russell was sidelined for a dangerous tackle on Jean-Marc Doussain, his opposite number. In the 10 minutes Russell was off the pitch, Toulouse scored 13 points.
??We know that games are won on defence and discipline,?? said Townsend. ?? I thought our defence was excellent against a team that move the ball very quickly, but discipline wasn't and that has to improve.??
Warriors lock Leone Nakarawa was also yellow carded later in the game, although Glasgow conceded only three points while the Fijian lock was off the field. However, Townsend stressed that no side can afford to play a team of Toulouse??s calibre with 14 men.
Townsend said: ??We have to keep our discipline under pressure. Two yellow cards is not something we've seen for a number of weeks.
??The two actions that led to the yellow card were disappointing. It is an obviously an area where we have to improve.??
The French side??s win moved them to the top of Pool 4, three points ahead of Glasgow. The two teams will meet again at Scotstoun next Saturday, and Townsend said that he had seen enough from his side to believe that the Warriors can reverse the result at their home ground.
??I was really proud of the effort and a lot of the ability that was shown there,?? he said. ??That was a top side we came up against and the players played with huge courage and put us in a position where we almost got a losing bonus point.
??It was a missed opportunity to come away with something. When you lose by eight it is really disappointing. We learned a lot during that game, for the rest of the season but specifically for next week.??
Warriors scrum-half Henry Pyrgos added that none of the Glasgow players held Russell responsible for the defeat.
??It was unfortunate,?? said Pyrgos. ??Finn is a good defender and the boys are 100 per cent behind him.??
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