Following the Glasgow Warriors’ 28-20 victory over the Lions at the Scotstoun Stadium, here are our five takeaways from the URC clash.

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A belter of an evening in Glasgow wasn’t wasted by the Warriors and Lions, who produced a cracking URC match on Halloween weekend, with Franco Smith’s charges doing what Franco Smith’s charges do: win at home.

The hosts raced into a 19-3 half-time lead with Player of the Match Fergus Watson scoring the opening try of the encounter, as he got on the end of a stunning cross kick from Dan Lancaster. The youngster had much to do after plucking the ball out of the Glasgow night sky as he skinned Chris Smith and fended off Henco van Wyk en route to scoring.

Lancaster went from provider to scorer as he crossed for the Warriors’ second try on the half-hour mark as he rounded off a well-worked team try linking up superbly with George Horne after a superb offload by Euan Ferrie. Jack Singleton rounded off the tries in the first-half as the first England international to represent the Warriors got on the end of a Horne pass to score in his first game in 13 months, more on that later.

Whilst it was one-way traffic in the first-half, the Lions did mount a comeback in the second, with Springboks scrum-half Morne van den Berg making it a seven-point game with his try before Siba Mahashe pounced on a loose ball after a high bomb to put the visitors within striking distance.

Morne Brandon put the Lions ahead off the back of a powerful maul as the visitors edged in front, but it was not to be for the Joburgers as Ollie Smith scored in the latter stages of the match, with Horne robbing Ivan van Rooyen’s side of a deserved bonus point with a late penalty.

A special return for Jack Singleton

A night that we were again reminded just how precious life is, with the Glasgow faithful rising to their feet in applause in the fifth minute to pay tribute to the late Hyron Andrews. The TMO review for Bayley Kuenzele’s try, which was chalked off after a brilliant tackle by Quan Horn, meant that the crowd applauded again when the clock was correctly wound back.

In the 35th minute, though, the crowd was cheering on their newest try-scoring hooker with Jack Singleton latching onto a pass from George Horne, who was a menace to the Lions’ defence, to score on his debut and first appearance in 13 months. Last year, the 30-year-old had a cardiac event during a training session at Gloucester and subsequently had stents and balloons fitted to open up his arteries.

It was a stunning moment for Singleton as he touched down for his new club, who he has joined on a short-term deal, but it was far from his only standout moment. He brilliantly intercepted Morne van den Berg’s pass at the back of a lineout, which led to Kuenzele’s disallowed try, and showed a real hunger in defence, leading the tackle count for the Warriors whilst on the pitch.

He trotted off the pitch in the 49th minute and was given a rousing ovation when doing so. Singleton last played for England back in 2022 and now qualifies for Scotland through his grandparents and World Rugby’s birthright transfer. It’s still too early to think that he could wiggle his way into their selection discussion for either nation, but it was a bright performance on his debut, especially for the man who admitted that the thought of never playing again “definitely crossed my mind”.

Business as usual for Franco

19 Warriors players were included in Gregor Townsend’s Scotland squad for the upcoming Nations Championship fixtures, but only five were released back to Franco Smith for the clash against the Lions.

They were Ollie Smith, Stafford McDowall, George Horne, Alex Craig and Jamie Ritchie, with the latter lasting just nine minutes before suffering what looks to have been a serious ACL injury, folding awkwardly backwards from a breakdown.

Despite fielding a team with a quarter of the experience that beat Benetton last weekend, it was business as usual for Smith’s charges, who rumbled their way to victory, maintaining their unbeaten run at Scotstoun Stadium which stretches back to April 2025.

After slow starts earlier this season, the script was flipped on a cracking evening in Glasgow with the Warriors racing into a 19-3 half-time lead, which was enough of a buffer for the inexperienced bench to hold onto.

As much as it was business as usual for the hosts, it was for the visitors too as the Lions failed to break their unwanted and woeful winless streak outside of South Africa, having last claimed a victory over Zebre in Parma in October 2024.

Lions lack bite and lineout accuracy

The Lions lived off scraps today as the lineout failed again to be the attacking platform it needed to be. Time and time again, Van Rooyen’s side wasted possession at the set-piece, which remains one of the richest sources of tries in the modern game.

Sure, it came right in the second half with Van den Berg and Brandon’s tries coming from the lineouts, but they dug themselves into a hole in the opening 40 minutes.

In the 18th minute, the Lions spoiled possession in Glasgow’s 22, the Warriors cleared to touch, and from the ensuing lineout, the hosts were gifted possession, and Watsons sped down the touchline. It was a huge swing in territory.

It wasn’t just about the inaccuracies with the throws but what occurred when they did win possession, with Kuenzele’s disallowed try coming from an intercept. An over-complicated lineout move in the 23rd minute wasted another chance as Erich Cronje was smashed.

Furthermore, Van Rooyen’s charges attempted to pin Glasgow inside their 22 with attacking kicks on the gain-line, but ultimately that just threw possession away. It was a tactic that they used throughout the match with mixed success, but more often than not, it didn’t pay dividends.

Test watch

It was a gutting night for Jamie Ritchie, who looked incredibly uncomfortable as he limped off the pitch in the opening 10 minutes of the game after falling awkwardly after competing at a breakdown. Ritchie’s return to Scotland has been injury-hit, meaning that he only made his debut for Glasgow last weekend but now looks set for another extended period on the sidelines.

While Scotland boss Townsend will be disappointed not to have Ritchie’s services next month, he will be pleased by the performances of several internationals, including Horne, who was outstanding ball-in-hand. His kicking was also sublime.

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Stafford McDowall, who was captaining the side in the absence of Kyle Steyn, came up in the clutch to throw the match-winning pass, while Watson looks to be a serious prospect with a brilliant shift in just his fourth professional match.

Van den Berg was the pick of the Lions players as the Springboks scrum-half replicated his Test form in club colours after passing an HIA early in the game. Boan Venter was huge off the bench for the visitors, particularly at scrum time, while Quan Horn also impressed in the week that he was snubbed by the Springboks coaching team.

Henco van Wyk is unfortunate not to have got a look into Rassie Erasmus’ squad and put in another powerhouse shift in the centres.