THERE is nothing quite as good for confidence as winning by 50 points and still knowing you have an even stronger team to put out the following week.
That is where Glasgow Warriors find themselves as they prepare to head to Parma, to face Zebre, with Ryan Wilson, Fraser Brown, Scott Cummings, Sam Johnson and Tommy Seymour back in contention after recovering from their Rugby World Cup exertions.
"We’re not just talking about the Scotland guys. Niko Matawalu and DTH van der Merwe are guys with a great amount of experience playing for Glasgow and were at the World Cup playing for other countries," pointed out John Dalziel, the forwards coach.
"Having them all back is huge. There’s a whole lot of quality in there and experience. With the guys who’ve been playing well here, the likes of Kiran McDonald, it’s a really good mix.
'There are plenty games to go and Europe’s still in front of us, so looking to get back in there."
To add to the feelgood factor, Ali Price is back training after damaging a foot in the opening World Cup game and could he available next week when Sale Sharks turn up at Scotstoun in the Heineken Champions Cup.
Glasgow have already had a sample of the way the Test players can raise standards, demonstrated in the transformation in the team from the one that lost tamely to the Dragons to the one that thrashed the Southern Kings as soon as the first tranche of World Cup players returned to action.
"The guys we were missing – not only was it a big number but they were also in key areas," Dalziel pointed out. "Your tens are Adam [Hastings] and Pete Horne who covers both here and for Scotland.
"Ali Price and George Horne, any team would miss them if they didn’t have them. It was good to have George give us a little zip in there and having him around has really helped Jamie Dobie [the new scrum-half signing] as well – he’s been a real bright spot for us.
"There has been a lot of good performances in the games so far, even in the defeats, both in the pack and the backline. To have those [international] guys linking it together made for a much more complete performance.
"There’s been a lot of dialogue between ourselves and the national coaches. There’s a complete plan of how we re-integrate the guys. You can’t control when they’re released but the plan stays the same."
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