The world has changed considerably since December 2019, but for Kyle Steyn, the memories are still crystal-clear. Pouching an Adam Hastings cross-kick and streaking in from halfway as Glasgow Warriors came from 18-6 down on the stroke of half-time to inflict a rare home defeat on La Rochelle.
Niko Matawalu’s long-range intercept was the defining image of the victory, but it was Steyn’s score that gave the Warriors a lead to defend in the closing 15 minutes.
“It was everything you would expect from a game in Europe,” he recalls. “You know they are going to be proper boxing matches. Especially in a place like La Rochelle — it’s an awesome stadium where the crowd are right on top of you and full of energy.
“It was a tough first 40 minutes as they had the crowd behind their backs. Niko’s try was one of the bigger turning points, then I got mine.
“I was definitely blowing, and it felt like I only just had the wheels, but that shot of adrenaline you get when you’re going in, that really helped. There were so many team-mates right on my heels to celebrate. And a lot of those photos are still on display around Scotstoun today.
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“They still give you that same jolt of adrenaline and happiness. It was one of those moments that best explain why we do this: being able to share a moment like that with all your mates, all your team-mates, is so, so good.”
Glasgow are back on the Atlantic coast today to face a team who lost their first home game of the season to Toulouse, but have since scored 191 points in five straight wins at the Stade Marcel-Deflandre.
This afternoon’s match kicks off a campaign where the margin for error is even more infinitesimal than usual in the Heineken Champions Cup.
The Warriors have four pool fixtures, two against La Rochelle, two against Exeter Chiefs. Where in the normal six-game section, losing two is generally perceived as fatal, this time round a single defeat could be enough to remove a team from the qualification equation.
“With this format, you really don’t have a lot to work with,” Steyn admits. “You’ve got to make it count, and we know we’re going to a place where any away win has to be massively earned. The stadium, the exciting brand of rugby they use to energise their crowd. It all builds into a really big challenge and that’s exactly what you want as a rugby player.”
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Glasgow look a better balanced team this season, but are still very up and down, not least when it comes to discipline. Nonetheless, the presence of Jack Dempsey and Sione Tuipulotu gives Danny Wilson’s side a power and punch that they have lacked at the base of the scrum and in midfield since Josh Strauss and Alex Dunbar were in their pomp.
“We never really believed it [lack of power] was an issue,” Steyn shrugs. “We have our own identity and we love that identity. For us, it’s all about being able to impose our identity in Europe, and we’ve probably not been as successful as we would want at doing that.
“Sione is a great guy to play with [in the centres]. He’s kind of got it all: a good brain, really physical when he needs to be, but he’s also got good skills, with the ability to find gaps and offload and that kind of thing too.”
Steyn, 27, will never underestimate the joy of simply being out on the field, having had to wait longer than most for his post-lockdown restart. The centre/wing tore his hamstring off the bone ten days out from the first resumption clash against Edinburgh, then had to go under the knife again last December after suffering a recurrence.
Having won his first Scotland cap in the win over France in March 2020 — the last Murrayfield full-house before the shutdown — Steyn had to wait until October for his second, when he became the first player to run in four tries in an Edinburgh Test as Gregor Townsend’s team thumped Tonga. It is striking to hear him say that is pretty much the only occasion he has been satisfied with his performance so far this season.
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“I have been a wee bit frustrated. Bar that Tonga game, I’ve felt like I haven’t really hit my straps or been able to impose myself and have the impact I want to. Sometimes it comes down to overanalysing and overthinking things. You tend to forget the good and just focus on the bad and where you could have improved.
“I’m trying to keep a bit of perspective in that area but I’m also really hungry to keep building on these performances and a lot of the time this year I’ve walked off the pitch and felt like there was a lot more out there for me. But it’s also the case that sometimes you are way too zoomed in on the situation and you need someone who is a step further back to put everything into perspective for you. It’s just about reaching out for help, I suppose.
“The autumn was absolutely brilliant. Three sold-out games, and the Tonga game we ended up getting 32,000. That was the best part about it — having fans back in Murrayfield. So much about what all of us love in Test rugby revolves around having the fans there. Being able to drive into the stadium and hear the bagpipes and the people lining the road for the bus, all that is such a big part of what makes Test rugby at Murrayfield so special. The stuff that involves the people.”
With Duhan van der Merwe and Darcy Graham keen to carry on from where they left off in the Six Nations, Steyn’s only other involvement in the series was as a 60th minute replacement in the win over Australia. His father Rory — who used to be in charge of Nelson Mandela’s personal security detail — had booked to come over from South Africa for the Springbok and Japan games, where they were both in the stands. Steyn was fully understanding of the situation, and is now even more keen to ensure he has a say come the Six Nations.
“I was absolutely gutted not to be involved in the South Africa or Japan games, but that speaks volumes about the competition there was in the squad. As players, that’s something you’ve got to love about being at that level. The margins become so much finer and sometimes you are just on the other side of it. It just becomes a dogfight and you’ve got to scrap for every inch you can.
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“There was no point getting down or deflated about it. It was just about trying to turn that around and asking how I can start winning those dog-fights. With the games Scotland have won in the last 18 months, it’s a really exciting environment to be part of. You feel like there’s a train moving and you want to jump on, be a part of it, and influence what’s happening. All of that contributes to being pretty hungry to put in some decent performances ahead of the Six Nations.”
It’s a relentless lead-in to that tournament, with these two European rounds segueing into back-to-back 1872 Cup derbies then another Champions Cup double-header. Steyn’s message is simple: bring it on.
“It’s the best and most exciting time of the season,” says the man born in Johannesburg who qualifies for Scotland through his Glaswegian mother Gillian. “People in South Africa can’t believe the December schedule we get, because over there you always get a big break. But I think it’s brilliant. You know you’re going to get tested every week, really big games, really emotional games that mean a lot to both sides like the 1872 Cup. That’s what you want.”
