KYLE STEYN believes the key to success for Glasgow Warriors in their crucial European Champions Cup pool clash against La Rochelle on Saturday will be keeping their discipline and composure in what promises to be a hostile atmosphere on the pitch and in the stands at Stade Marcel Deflandre.
The French side conceded 17 penalties, including two yellow cards and a red card for hooker Pierre Bourgarit after an eye-gouging incident, when losing at Sale Sharks in their last Champions Cup outing.
“It maybe comes down to having a look to the culture – are they holding each other accountable? But I really don’t know too much about what is going on in their camp, so it really isn’t for me to say,” said Steyn.
“We don’t need those kinds of distractions and getting hot-headed in the moment.
"We need all 15 of us on the pitch and focused on what we need to do – and not getting carried away with anything else,” he added.
It was announced yesterday that Steyn has signed a two-year contract extension with Warriors, to run consecutively to his current deal which runs out at the end of this season, meaning he will stay at the club until at least the summer of 2022.
“It was pretty easy decision to make,” he said. “I’ve been able to settle in well, my fiancée has come over and she’s settled in well and gets on well with most of the girlfriends. We’ve got tonnes of family over here, so it has been pretty easy.”
With his medium-term future sorted out, the 25-year-old says he is now focused on re-establishing himself as a regular starter in the team.
Having initially broken into the side whilst on secondment from the Scotland 7s squad during the second half of last season, and earning a call-up for the World Cup training camp after a series of impressive performances, his form has dipped in the past few months.
“It has been a little bit frustrating personally not being able to kick on from the end of last season, but that’s part and parcel of the career we are in,” he said.
“There is going to be ebbs and flows so it is just about fighting through that and picking up minutes where I can.”
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