Glaws put Irish flop behind them

If Gloucester beat Mont de Marsan at Kingsholm next weekend they can look forward tio a home quarter-final in the Amlin Cup thanks to an overdue return of the many qualities that have marked their season but went missing against London Irish in their last Premiership game.

After recent disappointments, all Gloucester needed was a win to steady the ship, and they got just that with a 31-26 success at Bordeaux-Begles that took them into the last eight.

Hooker Darren Dawidiuk got the sole cherry and white try, but Freddie Burns added 26 points to his burgeoning tally to guide Glaws home in a severe test in France.

It was always a tight game, but Burns’s unerring boot was good enough and once again Glaws have to thank him for victory.

Coach Nigel Davies acknowledged how important it was to bounce back when he told the Citizen: “That’s an absolutely vital win – not just for this game but for the season as a whole.

“We were very poor defensively in the first-half, we dropped off a few tackles and it wasn’t good enough.

“We had to fight back, and it wasn’t difficult at half-time because we needed to improve our territory to give ourselves chances.

“Do that and step up from a defensive perspective, and we would always be in with a shout.

“There’s never any easy game in France, and after a disappointing London Irish defeat it was great to get the result – that was all-important.

“We’ve won all five games in this pool so far and that’s not a bad record.”

Win all six and Glaws can look forward to a Kingsholm game in the last eight, but more important is the fact that they have refused to allow the London Irish flop to turn into a habit … that could have been hugely costly.