Guest Blogger: Glasgow Warriors Summer Departures

Guest blogger and Glasgow fan 'The Pen' discusses the players departing Scotstoun this summer.

The end of a season is always a time of mixed emotions. So many moments to look back on, some to cherish, some to forget and then there is the inevitable rumours and movements.

This season at Glasgow, there are 18 players saying goodbye to the club and I’d like to focus on just a few of them who have made an enormous impact on the club and the fans.

Not many imports make the type of impact in just 30 appearances that Italian flanker Simone Favaro has. From his very first appearance against the Dragons, where he was yellow carded and scored the try that gave Glasgow the bonus point win, he has had a place in the hearts of every single Warriors fan. Why? Because Simone wears his heart on his sleeve and without fail puts his body on the line in every single game. Take the match against Racing Metro in his first season where he broke his ribs putting in a tackle. He picked himself up, was at several breakdowns in the ensuing phases and made another tackle, winning a turnover, before collapsing to the turf, unable to breathe. That is the kind of player that every club craves. Someone who will run through brick walls for the cause.

It’s not just his tackling though, Simone has embraced the culture in Glasgow and he has time for every single fan who speaks to him and asks for signatures and photographs. And he does so with a massive smile on his face. The lack of contract renewal was one of the announcements met with great surprise by many and huge sadness by all. Simone will forever be a Warrior and an honorary Glaswegian…

We’re also saying goodbye to the best beard in rugby as Josh Strauss heads for the exit door and will ply his trade in the Aviva Premiership with Sale Sharks next season. Strauss arrived in Glasgow with a very high reputation and pedigree from his time in his native South Africa and over the 104 appearances he has made for the club, he has proven to be one of the sides greatest signings.

Strauss is nigh on impossible. As a ball carrier, there have been fewer better than him in a Warriors shirt and he consistently hits the gain line time and time again, drawing 2 opponents to him as 1 is just not enough. His tackling is a joy to watch as he hits hard and fair and leaves absolutely nothing out on the pitch. Strauss, Scots qualified through residency, is a tough act to follow at Glasgow but his legacy will be bringing through players like Adam Ashe and Matt Fagerson and they could not have had a better role model.

Rolling back the years and going blonde again for charity, it was sad to see Sean Lamont finally hang up his boots after a tremendous career that seen him in Warriors colours twice as well as stints with Northampton and Scarlets. 112 caps for Glasgow, 105 appearances for Scotland tell you how skilled Sean was and why he has become such a legend in these parts.

Lamont’s versatility was key to his success. Able to fit at centre or wing with tremendous power and excellent speed, something he kept even when he was the old man of Scotstoun, Lamont is porbably one of the best wingers ever produced by Scotland. No matter the competition for places, he could still show his class and experience to get himself and his team mates through games. And he was hard as nails as well. My abiding memory of Sean will always be the 2015 Pro12 final against Munster. Late on and with Glasgow in control, Munster made a break and Lamont threw himself in a tackle, dislocating his shoulder. Did he walk off or lie down and wait for the physio? No, he simply knelt down, put his shoulder back into its socket and carried on.

Perhaps the biggest miss will be Gordon Reid. Having joined from Ayr, he made 113 appearances in a Warriors shirt and epitomised the spirit of the club on and off the field. Gordon makes time for every single person who speaks to him. He comes out after every game, win or lose, good performance or bad and takes selfie after selfie. He is highly regarded by all and he is a kind hearted a man as you could meet.

And I haven’t even mentioned what he gives to the Warriors team. He is a strong and dependable scrummager and in the loose the sight of Gordy sitting opposition players down as he pushes through to make the gain line endears him further to the fans. His try against Munster in the 2014 play-offs was invaluable and was the turning point of the game, leading to the Warriors win. Then of course there was the “shoulder-shuffle” (YouTube it, it’s absolutely tremendous!) following his try against Treviso. He’s going to be very sorely missed.

All of these players have made significant contributions to the Warriors and every single one of them embodies the Warriors spirit and what the fans look for in their players. Replacing these players will be a very tough task for Glasgow, not just from a playing side. Finding guys like these is almost impossible.

This is no doubt a scene being repeated up and down the country at all clubs. We all have our favourites afterall…

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