Glasgow Warriors reaction: Back row injuries take shine off as Franco Smith gives verdict on opening win

Franco Smith’s side defeated the Sharks 35-19 at Scotstoun, picking up a bonus point against the South African visitors.

However, Dempsey played no part in the victory having injured his groin in the warm-up. Darge, meanwhile, had to come off late on with a knee issue.

It was particularly cruel luck on Dempsey who was due to play his first competitive Warriors game in eight months following a groin injury. Smith, the Glasgow coach, said the latest setback was unrelated.

‘A completely different injury’

“It’s a completely different thing,” said Smith. “He's had some big injuries for long periods in his life before. But he managed to claw his way back from a mental and physical perspective. He worked so hard, even during the off-season, to be ready for the start [of the season]. And he was. He's in good physical condition. So it's understandable, more than understandable that he's a bit disappointed.”

Dempsey last played for Glasgow in the Champions Cup tie against Harlequins in January. He injured his hamstring playing for Scotland against Wales in the Six Nations and did not play again for the remainder of the season. He had a run-out in the Warriors’ pre-season game against Northampton earlier this month and was named in the starting line-up to play the Sharks but was replaced at the last minute by Euan Ferrie.

“It’s a groin injury,” Smith added. “These men work so hard on their recovery process to get back on the field. It's the same with Zander [Fagerson, currently sidelined]. It sometimes happens that you aggravate something else in the process. He didn't have any problem regarding anything before we ran out. It happened in the warm-up. We'll see how serious it is.”

A bump or a bruise

Smith was confident that Darge will be okay. “It’s just his knee,” said the coach. “But it's just a bump or a bruise. We're not sure. But I brought him off as a precaution.”

Smith was largely satisfied with his team’s performance as they eventually pulled clear of doughty opponents, outscoring them by five tries to three. The Sharks stayed in the fight until late on, reducing Glasgow’s lead to two points with 13 minutes remaining, but a fine score from Jamie Dobie and a penalty try saw the Warriors home. Kyle Rowe, Stafford McDowall and Rory Darge also touched down for Glasgow, with George Horne converting four from four.

The Sharks’ points came from tries from Edwill van der Merwe, Vincent Tshituka and Lukhanyo Am and two Jaden Hendrikse conversions

“I'm pleased,” said Smith. “I'm obviously disappointed with Jack Dempsey being ruled out and Rory Darge having picked up a little bit of a niggle.

Coach wants another look at chalked off tries

“That’s the only negative. Always at the start of a season, one or two things can go wrong, but I thought we played really, really well. The tries that were chalked off are definitely something I want to go and have a look at again, because that could have changed the momentum of the game even more.”

Johnny Matthews, the Glasgow hooker, had two tries disallowed in the first half. The first, from a driving maul, was chalked off because Fin Richardson had infringed at the lineout. Five minutes later Matthews was denied again when he failed to ground the ball over the line but there was a suspicion that the Sharks scrum-half, Ross Braude, had come in from the side.

“I thought the one that Johnny didn't score could have just as easily been a yellow card and penalty try,” said Smith, referring to the second incident. “But I'm not complaining at all. I'm really grateful for the way that we solved problems and the way we applied ourselves.

“I thought their nine joined from the side which caused Johnny to think it was going to be a penalty try anyway so he could just have a go, and fell short. Like I said, I'm not criticising anyone. I just want to go and look at the video.”