Glasgow Warriors 29-19 Racing 92: Hosts book spot in Champions Cup knockout stage

The Glasgow Warriors secured their place in the knockout stages of the European Champions Cup with a thrilling victory over Racing 92 at Scotstoun Stadium. First-half tries from George Horne, Jamie Dobie, Sebastian Cancelliere, and Sione Tuipulotu established a commanding lead for the home side, while Vinaya Habosi scored a try for the French team.

In the second half, Rory Darge added another try, and despite late scores from replacements Lee-Marvin Mazibuko and Tristan Tedder for the visitors, Glasgow Warriors held on for an important bonus-point win. The Warriors will now travel to face English Premiership side Harlequins next weekend, aiming for a higher ranking in the pool to secure a more favorable draw in the next round.

The Warriors started the game strongly, breaching the Racing defense within the first two minutes. A brilliant break from deep by Tuipulotu set up a series of phases before Josh McKay’s clever pass found Horne, who scored under the posts, becoming Glasgow’s all-time leading try-scorer in Europe. Horne was forced off soon after for a head injury assessment and did not return, but his replacement Dobie quickly made an impact, scoring after a strong run by Matt Fagerson for the team’s second try. The Warriors were in full flow, with the midfield’s intricate play slicing open the Racing defense, allowing Cancelliere to score with ease.

The visitors finally showed some signs of life with five minutes remaining in the first half, as Antoine Gibert’s cross-field kick found Habosi, who scored to reduce the deficit to 10 points. However, Glasgow responded almost immediately, with Tuipulotu powering through the defense like a tank, evading Henry Arundell to score and establish a 15-point lead at halftime. The home side all but sealed the win when Darge broke off from a rolling maul to complete their fifth try.

Racing then enjoyed their first sustained period of pressure in the game and were rewarded with a try from Mazibuko. The Parisians came on strong late, with Tedder finishing off a brilliant attack for their third try. However, it was all too little too late, as Glasgow secured the five points to ensure their European challenge will continue into the knockout stages. Glasgow’s starting lineup included McKay, Cancelliere, Jones, Tuipulotu, Steyn, Jordan, Horne, Sutherland, Matthews, Fagerson, Brown, Cummings, Fagerson, Darge, and Mann. The replacements were Hiddleston, Bhatti, Talakai, Samuel, Miller, Ferrie, Dobie, and Weir. Racing 92’s starting lineup featured Spring, Habosi, Tedder, Chavancy, Arundell, Gibert, Le Garrec, Julien, Kaitu’u, Sodoni, Palu, Cokobau, Zinzadze, Diallo, and Baudonne. The replacements were Escobar, Ben Arous, Mazibuko, Taufifenua, Dayamani, Labarbe, Lancaster, and Idrissi.