We need to talk about: Losing at half-time

It’s been a strange season for the Warriors – but there is no stranger stat than this:

Glasgow win more Pro 12 games when they are losing at half-time than they do when they are winning at half-time.

Allow On Top Of The Moon to be your guide to a game of two halves…

This phenomenon first became obvious during the club’s current streak of 7 straight wins. The only one of those fixtures where the Warriors had a half-time lead was their 20-0 advantage over the Blues at Scotstoun. They defeated Leinster after drawing at the break and had to overturn a first period deficit 5 times to keep their winning run alive.

This is not a new set of circumstances for Gregor Townsend’s men though. There have been another 4 occasions this season when the team have come away with the win even though they weren’t in front at half-time. In fact, they have lead at the end of the first period in just 6 of their 19 league games this season. Glasgow have only turned 2 of those winning positions into victories at the final whistle, losing 3 and drawing 1.

This means that the Warriors have won just 33% of their games when in front after 40 minutes. By contrast they have won 10 (or 77%) of their other games (73% of games when losing at half-time and 100% of games when drawing). Their scoring stats in these ten matches underline this second half dominance – the aggregate for the opening period is 89-117 in favour of the opposition, the second an emphatic 184-45 to Glasgow. In their last 4 games the only points they have conceded after the break were to Stuart McCloskey’s converted try for Ulster.

So why should this be? Glasgow do quite often appear to be slow starters, biding their time and seeing how the match will play out before making their move (and possibly lacking a bit of precision before they really get warmed up). There have also been occasions where the opening period has allowed the Warriors to build the foundations of victory, working over their opponents and leaving tired defenders later on in the match. The unknown factor is what is happening in the dressing room at the break – is Toony’s half-time hairdryer the club’s secret weapon? Or does the coach just provide the minor tweaks and adjustments necessary to break down the opposition? It would certainly be fascinating to be a fly on the wall!

Those results in full: