Samoan winger Lome Fa’atau believes he will benefit more than most from Glasgow Warriors’ move to Firhill.
The speedy 32-year-old expects the playing surface at Partick Thistle’s football stadium to be kept in better condition than most rugby pitches during the winter months, and knows that will plays to his strengths.
Rather than having to cope with muddy fields over the winter months, he is relishing the upcoming months at the Warriors’ new home.
Firhill also boasts undersoil heating, a potentially priceless asset for when the cold snap arrives.
The former Wellington Hurricanes player makes his debut in Saturday’s home match against Munster, having been the top scorer in Super 14 for his old club last season.
He joins fellow Samoans Opeta Palepoi and Justin Va’a in Glasgow, and said: "I suppose due to the weather, most people think that Magners League rugby won’t be as expansive and as fast as the Super 14, but playing at a football ground will hopefully mean that we can play at real pace throughout the entire season."
He stressed: "I’m really looking forward to playing in front of the Glasgow fans for the first time.
"The weather has been pretty cold back home so it hasn’t come as a shock to me yet and settling into the squad has been easy as well. Justin and OP (Palepoi) have been a great help."
Fa’atau might be the player who catches the imagination of supporters but Scotland flanker Kelly Brown will also make his Warriors debut on Saturday.
Scotland’s World Cup player of the tournament Dan Parks returns to club duty at stand-off, and national team centre Andrew Henderson is also included for the first time since returning from France.
Brown, 25, said: "The World Cup was an awesome experience so hopefully I will get the chance to play in some more in the future, however my focus has now fully turned to Glasgow."
Warriors head coach Sean Lineen saw his team lose their opening two Magners League clashes in Wales, to Cardiff Blues and Ospreys, but Saturday’s clash is match three in a five-game run of successive Firhill fixtures in the competition.
And with victories in Glasgow over Connacht and Leinster behind them, Warriors coach Sean Lineen is hoping the new faces can inspire a third win in a row.
Lineen said: "We are developing some real competition for places, which is exactly what you need to drive a team forward.
"We are also getting closer to our European campaign, so I am looking for our boys to really front up against a powerful Munster side."
