Glasgow Warriors 30-38 La Rochelle
Glasgow Warriors were left to rue errors at key moments at Scotstoun this evening, as a late fightback was not enough to deny La Rochelle a 38-30 win over Danny Wilson’s men.
The Warriors must now rely on results around Europe tomorrow, as they wait to see if their tally of five points will be enough to book a spot in the last-16 of the Heineken Champions Cup.
Right from the opening kick-off, Glasgow’s defence was pressed into service in the face of an early attacking onslaught from last season’s runners-up. A rolling maul was bound for the try-line until Fraser Brown’s intervention, one that saw the Glasgow captain shown a yellow card with just five minutes played.
Yet a huge early defensive shift from the home side, spearheaded by the pack, kept La Rochelle at bay; indeed, it would be the Warriors who would open the scoring despite their numerical disadvantage. With La Rochelle penalised for going offside in midfield, Ross Thompson remained ice-cool to give the hosts a 3-0 lead in front of the East Stand.
It would be a short-lived lead, however. After Pierre Popelin cancelled out Thompson’s effort with a penalty of his own to level the scores, the visitors would cross for the opening try of the night with 20 minutes on the clock. Relentless pressure inside the Glasgow 22 saw the Warriors defence stretched to breaking point, with Raymond Rhule the man to reach out and ground the ball in the corner. Popelin converted well from the touchline, and the visitors led 10-3.
Roared on by the returning Warrior Nation, Glasgow wasted no time in cutting the deficit. A blinding line from Sam Johnson off the tail of a lineout set the Warriors on the front foot, forcing La Rochelle to infringe at the breakdown. From 15 metres, Thompson made no mistake, bringing his side within a try.
The Glasgow fly-half reduced the gap even further on 33 minutes, punishing an over-eager La Rochelle kick-chase from the visitors’ 22 to make it a one-point game. It could have been even better for the Warriors with just five minutes to go in the half, as both Josh McKay and Jack Dempsey brought the crowd to their feet as they went in search of Glasgow’s opening try.
La Rochelle would have the final word in a frenetic first-half, however, crossing for the second try on the stroke of half-time. Paul Boudehent would be the man driven over from a well-executed shift drive, Popelin pushing the conversion wide to leave the score at 15-9 in favour of the visitors at the break.

If the first-half had been one of frustration in attack for Glasgow, though, the second began in the perfect fashion. A powerful carry from Matt Fagerson on halfway put the Warriors on the front foot, before Thompson was sent through a gap by a perfectly-timed pass out the back. The fly-half picked out a beautiful pass to McKay and the New Zealander was not to be stopped, finishing superbly on the outside arc to send the Scotstoun crowd into delirium. Thompson added the extras, and the home side led by a point a minute into the second stanza.
Once again, though, it’d be a short-lived advantage. Back came the visitors once more, with Pierre Bourgarit crossing after breaking a tackle and trundling home from ten metres. Popelin’s conversion made it a six-point game, before adding a penalty to give La Rochelle a 25-16 lead with half an hour to play.
Momentum was with the visitors, and this was evident in the try that sealed the bonus-point for the French side. A loose pass in midfield from Glasgow was hacked downfield by Brice Dulin, with Thompson getting back well to compete for the ball. A secondary hack from Dulin was mis-cued, only to bounced perfectly into the path of Pierre Boudehent. The winger duly crossed untouched, Popelin converting to take the score to 32-16.
Another penalty from Popelin had seemingly put the game beyond the Warriors, but Danny Wilson’s men had other ideas. With the Warrior Nation rallying behind their troops, it would be Glasgow who would be finishing on the front foot. Repeated indiscretions from the visitors saw first Dillian Leyds, then Gregory Alldritt dispatched to the sin bin, with the noise from the home crowd rising in expectation.
The Warriors weren’t to be denied, with their second try of the night arriving with six minutes to play. With two men to spare and a scrum marmalising the opposition, it would be the simplest of tasks for George Horne to feed Ollie Smith on the angle for the full-back to dive over on his European debut for his first try in Glasgow colours. Duncan Weir, on for Thompson, converted, and the Warriors were going in search of a valuable losing bonus-point at least.
A 78th minute penalty from Ihaia West would ultimately deny the Warriors any reward, but the home side would not go quietly into the Glasgow night. It would be Smith again who would make it a double, diving on a loose ball to get the crucial touch. Weir would once again convert, but the clock would beat the Warriors in their pursuit of bonus-points.
Instead, Wilson’s men must now await the results from Montpellier’s clash with Exeter and Sale’s meeting with the Ospreys. Wins for both English sides, and a last-16 place will still be Glasgow’s.
live commentary 8:00 PM Saturday 22 Jan 2022
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Glasgow Warriors
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Ollie Smith
23. Replacement4metres made
6MINUTES PLAYED
0TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Duncan Weir
22. Replacement0metres made
11MINUTES PLAYED
0TACKLES MADE
2COMPLETE PASSES
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George Horne
21. Replacement5metres made
20MINUTES PLAYED
1TACKLES MADE
28COMPLETE PASSES
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Ryan Wilson
20. Replacement11metres made
16MINUTES PLAYED
0TACKLES MADE
2COMPLETE PASSES
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Kiran McDonald
19. Replacement1metres made
19MINUTES PLAYED
2TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Simon Berghan
18. Replacement1metres made
16MINUTES PLAYED
2TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Jamie Bhatti
17. Replacement5metres made
32MINUTES PLAYED
4TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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George Turner
16. Replacement32metres made
32MINUTES PLAYED
3TACKLES MADE
3COMPLETE PASSES
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Jack Dempsey
8. Number 823metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
10TACKLES MADE
3COMPLETE PASSES
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Rory Darge
7. Back-row10metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
10TACKLES MADE
5COMPLETE PASSES
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Matt Fagerson
6. Back-row51metres made
64MINUTES PLAYED
11TACKLES MADE
3COMPLETE PASSES
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Richie Gray
5. Second-row0metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
9TACKLES MADE
6COMPLETE PASSES
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Scott Cummings
4. Second-row2metres made
61MINUTES PLAYED
12TACKLES MADE
3COMPLETE PASSES
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Zander Fagerson
3. Tighthead prop5metres made
64MINUTES PLAYED
9TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Fraser Brown
2. Hooker3metres made
35MINUTES PLAYED
2TACKLES MADE
5COMPLETE PASSES
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Oli Kebble
1. Loosehead prop8metres made
48MINUTES PLAYED
6TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Ali Price
9. Scrum-half0metres made
60MINUTES PLAYED
4TACKLES MADE
42COMPLETE PASSES
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Ross Thompson
10. Stand-off14metres made
69MINUTES PLAYED
7TACKLES MADE
18COMPLETE PASSES
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Rufus McLean
11. Wing20metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
2TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Sam Johnson
12. Inside-centre11metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
14TACKLES MADE
4COMPLETE PASSES
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Sione Tuipulotu
13. Outside-centre43metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
6TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Kyle Steyn
14. Wing40metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
7TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Josh McKay
15. Full-back74metres made
74MINUTES PLAYED
3TACKLES MADE
6COMPLETE PASSES
Stade Rochelais
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Brice Dulin
15. Full-back29metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
3TACKLES MADE
6COMPLETE PASSES
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Dillyn Leyds
14. Wing27metres made
74MINUTES PLAYED
4TACKLES MADE
2COMPLETE PASSES
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Raymond Rhule
13. Outside-centre26metres made
72MINUTES PLAYED
7TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Jonathan Danty
12. Inside-centre10metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
7TACKLES MADE
4COMPLETE PASSES
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Pierre Boudehent
11. Wing40metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
4TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Pierre Popelin
10. Stand-off8metres made
64MINUTES PLAYED
3TACKLES MADE
17COMPLETE PASSES
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Tawera Kerr-Barlow
9. Scrum-half22metres made
65MINUTES PLAYED
1TACKLES MADE
61COMPLETE PASSES
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Dany Priso
1. Loosehead prop17metres made
64MINUTES PLAYED
5TACKLES MADE
2COMPLETE PASSES
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Pierre Bourgarit
2. Hooker36metres made
48MINUTES PLAYED
8TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Uini Atonio
3. Tighthead prop10metres made
58MINUTES PLAYED
4TACKLES MADE
2COMPLETE PASSES
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Romain Sazy
4. Second-row26metres made
60MINUTES PLAYED
2TACKLES MADE
6COMPLETE PASSES
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Remi Picquette
5. Second-row11metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
11TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Remi Bourdeau
6. Back-row8metres made
64MINUTES PLAYED
7TACKLES MADE
3COMPLETE PASSES
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Paul Boudehent
7. Back-row10metres made
80MINUTES PLAYED
11TACKLES MADE
1COMPLETE PASSES
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Gregory Alldritt
8. Number 862metres made
69MINUTES PLAYED
11TACKLES MADE
11COMPLETE PASSES
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Facundo Bosch
16. Replacement1metres made
32MINUTES PLAYED
10TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Leo Aouf
17. Replacement2metres made
16MINUTES PLAYED
4TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Guram Papidze
18. Replacement2metres made
22MINUTES PLAYED
7TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Thomas Lavault
19. Replacement1metres made
20MINUTES PLAYED
7TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Mathieu Tanguy
20. Replacement6metres made
16MINUTES PLAYED
4TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Thomas Berjon
21. Replacement0metres made
15MINUTES PLAYED
5TACKLES MADE
9COMPLETE PASSES
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Ihaia West
22. Replacement0metres made
16MINUTES PLAYED
1TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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Eneriko Buliruarua
23. Replacement0metres made
8MINUTES PLAYED
4TACKLES MADE
0COMPLETE PASSES
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