GLASGOW Warriors’ long march to the PRO12 title is well documented: they lost three semi-finals in four years from 2010 then were beaten in the 2014 final before at last winning the trophy the following year. Through to the quarter-finals of the Champions Cup for the first time this year, they had hoped they would not make such piecemeal progress in Europe, but Saracens proved too strong on Sunday, winning 38-13.
So what do they need to do in order to give themselves the best chance of not only getting through to the quarter-finals again but going at least one round further this time next year? “That’s the magic question,” Warriors winger Lee Jones said. “I think the boys will be better for having had that experience. When it comes to games like that, it’s little things that make a big difference.
“We were in that game at 14-8, but then there were a couple of things that went wrong and suddenly the game looked like it was slipping away from us. It was at that stage of the game where if we had scored next and kept a bit of ball, it could have gone the other way. The game got away from us in that middle period of the second half.”
In other words, greater consistency is required, and finding that is easier said than done. Saracens themselves were far from uniformly excellent throughout the 80 minutes on Sunday, and looked especially vulnerable during that brief spell in the second half when Glasgow were just a full score behind following Jones’ try. But the holders’ decision-making was superior over the piece, and it was notable that their attention wavered only once they had got on top, whereas the Warriors lost focus precisely when they needed it most.
“We never had a lot of ball in the first half, when they dominated,” Jones accepted. “Over the whole game they dominated the gain line, and that was one thing we had looked to – if we can stop them there, that’s when they lose games, and that’s where we would have won the match.
“They were just really effective at what they do. We knew that – the coaches had prepared for two months looking at them, and we had ways that we were going to get ourselves into the game.
“But they starved us of possession in the first half. And when we did have the ball – they put you under incredible pressure. Pressure at the ruck, pressure when we’re kicking, and it’s difficult. You have to be at your absolute best to hold on to the ball.”
Saracens meet Munster in the semi-final later this month, and the Warriors are also up against the Irish side next, in the PRO12 in Cork on Saturday evening. Jones’s team need to win that game and their following three matches to have a chance of reaching the play-offs, and he insisted there would be no hangover from Sunday’s defeat as they prepare for a return to league business.
“We even spoke about it on the field at the end. We said that result’s done, there’s nothing we can do about it now, and Europe’s done for the season for us, so it’s about switching that focus back onto the league. We’re going to need to win every match that’s left, and the next one’s Munster.”
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