Cardiff-bound Dan Parks will not be distracted

Published on Wednesday 23 December 2009 22:04

DAN Parks' influence on the seasonal 1872 Cup derbies is rarely a minor issue, but he will this weekend strive to shake off talk around his move to Cardiff next summer and ensure his last two performances join those in the memorable bracket.

• Dan Parks has agreed a two-year deal with Cardiff but will be aiming to shine for Glasgow in their 1872 Cup clashes with Edinburgh. Picture: SNS

Glasgow refused to confirm the open secret that Parks has agreed a two-year deal with the Blues as it is understood there remain contractual t's to be crossed and i's to be dotted – Parks had a year remaining on his Glasgow contract. But both Sean Lineen and Rob Moffat, the Glasgow and Edinburgh coaches, insist that they expect the internationalt's focus to be firmly fixed on destroying Edinburgh at Firhill this Sunday.

Lineen declined to comment on the move, but, asked if he was worried his stand-off might be distracted, he said: "No. I am confident he won't because I have watched him train this week, and especially after Sunday and the way the players have reacted to that game (defeat to Gloucester]. They are totally focused on what they have to do in these matches."

Moffat is also acutely aware of the manner in which Parks can kill opponents with his kicking skills, having been assistant coach at Glasgow for four years before joining Edinburgh and watched the stand-off score 17 points in the 25-20 defeat Edinburgh suffered in their last meeting, at Firhill at the start of this year.

"I don't think it (transfer talk] will affect him at all," he said. "Dan Parks will cope well, no problem at all. I am not close enough to know if the players knew about him going before it was released; I don't think so.

"But he has proved in the past that he has been a good player for Glasgow and it does not affect us at all or the way we look at Dan Parks. Whether or not he has signed for another club he is still the same player that is playing against us on Sunday."

Lineen has made just one change to the side that lost down at Gloucester on Sunday, bringing back Thom Evans after a knee injury for youngster Dave McCall. Evans returns to his preferred left flank, where he will face Tim Visser, shifting DTH van der Merwe to the right wing and a contest with John Houston.

Ruaridh Jackson was considered for a return this week, at least to the bench, but with his match for Ayr being postponed at the weekend Lineen is keen for him to have more game-time before returning to the pro stage. Colin Gregor is also in good form and offers choices from the bench.

Edinburgh go west on Sunday with the confidence of having overcome Bath at home, while Glasgow's delight in beating Gloucester at Firhill has been tempered by the loss at Kingsholm. Chris Cusiter admitted the team had taken a hard look at their failure, again, to claim back-to-back wins in Europe.

"Not every team wins every week and we'll not lose any confidence after a disappointing game last weekend," he said. "In fact, the defeat to Gloucester just reaffirms that we have a lot of hard work to do.

"But it has given us a kick up the backside and made us realise we have to get back to what we have been doing well," he said. "We addressed these issues on Tuesday morning and want to put things right now and get back to winning ways. I am confident we can – it isn't rocket science."

The fact that Cusiter is not the team captain – Kellock is back in that role – underlines the growing leadership within the Glasgow squad, something that is pleasing Lineen as well as Kellock.

Tickets for Sunday's game have been selling well according to Glasgow, with new cup sponsors Greaves Sports reporting a marked increase in interest at their Glasgow shop this week. Bishopbriggs boy Kellock, who has experienced this fixture from both sides of the fence, is hopeful Firhill will rock to an even bigger crowd than the 6,665 that turned up for this fixture last season.

"These games take over at this time of year," he said. "It is Christmas in a couple of days apparently but we had double sessions.

"I didn't think about the Edinburgh game until Monday, but now, for us, this is a bigger event (than the Heineken Cup] solely based on the fact there is more public interest. We are looking to bring in the biggest crowd we have had all season so far.

"Ideally, we would sell out every game, but there is just a buzz about this game. We are sitting top of the league and playing the team in second, so derby match or no derby match, this is huge."