Glasgow off to winning start beating Connacht 12-18

by Frank Nickson Monday 4 September 2017

Glasgow and Connacht both recently had their hands on the PRO12 trophy - before the competition's expansion

©PA

Connacht 12-18 Glasgow Warriors, Galway

Glasgow Warriors were off to winning start under new head coach Dave Rennie as they defeated Connacht 12-18 in Galway in their opening encounter of Pro 14 season.

After Jack Carty and his counterpart, Pete Horne exchanged penalties, the Connacht fly-half added another three pointer to put them ahead. Debutant Jarrad Butler was denied a try by TMO Peter Fitzgibbon at the end of the first quarter after replays proved inconclusive.

Just at the stroke of half time, Carty kicked his third penalty goal to ensure Connacht had a six point lead at the end of the first half.

Rennie's side stepped up the accelerator in the second half as Ali Price scored the opening try of the game in the 47th minute with Horne kicking a penalty and a conversion on either side to provide Glasgow a 9-13 lead.

Connacht bounced back through a fourth penalty kick from Carty as the difference between the two teams were down to one point as the game headed to the final 10 minutes.

This is when winger Lee Jones scored the decisive try in the 71st minute to provide Glasgow with a breathing space and eventually they completed a six point victory to get their campaign off to a winning note.