ALEX Dunbar has become the latest senior player to pledge his future to Glasgow, joining team-mates such as Stuart Hogg and Tommy Seymour in opting to extend his stay at Scotstoun.
The decision by some of the Warriors’ leading players to remain with the club is an apparent vote of confidence in incoming coach Dave Rennie, who will succeed Gregor Townsend in the summer when the current incumbent takes over from national coach Vern Cotter.
Dunbar, who has signed a new two-year contract that ties him to Scotstoun until May 2019, is convinced that the Champions Cup quarter-finalists can keep getting better in the seasons to come.
“Glasgow Warriors is a great club and I’m really enjoying my rugby just now, so it was an easy decision when it came around,” he said yesterday at Oriam, the national sports centre in Edinburgh where the Scotland squad are training for the Six Nations Championship. “We’re playing well just now. We have a very settled squad and a lot of young boys coming through. The next few years we could push ourselves on. We’re improving this year, but have more as a squad to come. It was disappointing to miss so much of last year and a bit through injury. I just wanted to enjoy my rugby, get back to playing regularly again. I think we’ve got a very ambitious squad, with areas for us to improve even more. For us as a squad how much we’re enjoying it is a big factor. We can take it to the next level.
“There was interest [elsewhere], but I’m happy with my decision to stay. I’m looking forward to getting through the Six Nations and getting back into it. We have the European quarter-final to look forward to. I’m looking forward to doing something special with Glasgow. I’m happy I’ve signed and I’m looking forward to a good Six Nations.”
Dunbar is set to win his 20th cap on Saturday when Ireland visit Murrayfield in the first match of this year’s Championship, having made his debut back in 2013. Injuries have restricted his availability at times, but when fit he is now close to being an automatic choice.
His Warriors team-mate Mark Bennett is also in the squad of 36 named by Cotter for the tournament, although when the team to play Ireland is announced on Thursday it looks likely that Bennett will miss out, with South-Africa-based Huw Jones favourite to start in the No 13 jersey. Duncan Taylor of Saracens could also figure in the matchday squad of 23 if passed fit, while Matt Scott of Gloucester is another in contention to partner Dunbar.
“We have great strength in depth. Matty has started the season well with Gloucester, Huw had a great autumn internationals, and Mark has been playing well lately. We have to keep training hard and keep putting pressure on each other.”
Morale in the national squad appears to be high in the countdown to the Ireland game, something that is thanks in large part to a couple of excellent results at club level. Edinburgh qualified for the last eight of the Challenge Cup with a convincing win over Timisoara Saracens, while Glasgow’s 43-0 at Leicester took them into the quarter-finals of the premier European competition.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here