Kyle Steyn has been more than a rock for Glasgow Warriors this season, or last, or the year before. He has been their talisman.
Just this past weekend in the quarterfinal of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship, he returned to action from injury, scored two tries and made a try-saving tackle to put his side into this Saturday’s semifinal against the Vodacom Bulls.
Steyn was also the rock that got them to the title when they faced the Bulls in the 2024 URC final, a game where Glasgow shocked the Loftus faithful to take the title.
And while some may see the move from Scotstoun to Murrayfield for the game as something of a plus point for the Bulls, Steyn knows it differently, and knows that many of his teammates see the Edinburgh stadium as a second home because they don their Scotland colours there.
Coach Franco Smith has termed this a game for the whole of Scotland, hoping to rally the patriotism and get the normally feisty Edinburgh fans behind them, as they hope to get into the final again.
Steyn has dismissed the move as a factor, saying wherever they played the Bulls, they would have to deal with their strengths in any case.
"I'm not really too bothered about how they see it, to be honest.
"The challenge is going to be there anyway. We've come up against them twice this season and they've both been really physical, tight games and we're expecting nothing less.
"They're a team that thrives on this and we're just excited to see what we can bring to that and how we rise to that challenge at home.”
CRUCIAL SETPIECE BATTLE
Steyn said the setpiece battle would determine the game.
"The set-piece battle is huge, the kicking game is going to be massive and then just the physicality, they pride themselves on that, we pride ourselves on that. That's what you get when you get two teams that really want to stamp their mark on that.
"The intensity of the collision on both sides of the ball just goes up a notch, then you add the fact that it's a semi-final and that's the way those games go.
"We're not underestimating it in any way, but we're really focused on how we're going to bring that level of intensity to our game."
Both teams will name their lineups for Saturday on Friday, but the clash is sure to be a massive one, with Glasgow already beating the Bulls twice this season while the Bulls won at Scotstoun last season.