Townsend fury after ‘poorest performance of the season’

GREGOR TOWNSEND has possibly never been as visibly frustrated in his tenure as Glasgow’s head coach as when he was banging on the glass of the coach’s technical box at BT Murrayfield on Friday night, screaming at his players.

But when he emerged from the dressing room after the final whistle had sounded on his side’s 20-8 defeat, and loss of the 1872 Cup to rivals Edinburgh, he sounded calm, measured tones. His words retained the frustration, however, of watching what he termed his team’s ‘poorest performance of the season,’ an anger born not of a belief that his side were simply poorer than their early season form suggested, but from the knowledge that they had played well within themselves.

What irked the Borderer and competitive soul particularly was the fact that Edinburgh players showed more desire for the silverware in coming back from a 16-6 deficit.

‘I’m disappointed, like the players are,’ he said. ‘We didn’t show the effort needed in the first half. We need to be better at making sure we get a quick ball, and when we do, be better at creating chances to score.

‘It’s a blow to us as a group, as a squad, when we have so many supporters coming through for a game like that, a trophy is up for grabs, a key league game to get us to the top of the league and we don’t take our opportunities.

‘For me, there was a lack of urgency in our kick-chase, in things we pride ourselves on — our restarts, kick pressure and exiting — and there were errors that gave them their tries, an interception and from a kick charge-down.’

Townsend has been meticulous in his planning since he took on the top job from Sean Lineen in 2012, and raised heads with the frequent changing of his starting line-ups.

He continued last week, making 10 changes to the side that won at Scotstoun, but where it has worked well in heightening confidence and skills across the larger squad, it is questioned when the team hits a rocky patch such as that of the past month.

Yet Glasgow appeared flat at times in both 1872 Cup matches, despite the effort’s to maintain freshness.

‘No one plays at their highest level every game, which is why we have coaches and players on the field to remind them that standards have to be achieved every week or we will lose games,’ Townsend added.

‘This will be a reminder for us all as a group, when we review the game on Monday, that we have to do the fundamentals right and put the effort in to win games, or we will end up losing.

‘The players are all intelligent enough to know that you have to win games to make play-offs and you have to play much better than that to win games.

‘They are aware that the performance wasn’t good enough and we will work as a group, players and coaches, in how we analyse our game and build up again for next week.

‘We’re lucky that we have a home game in a week’s time against Scarlets and yes we want to see a reaction, but we are going to have to play very well to win that one.’