Castres v Edinburgh: Moffat knows what is required to succeed in France, even if Edinburgh's hopes of European progress look decidedly slender

IT IS not a surprise to reach this point in the season and have Scottish hopes of a place in European rugby's knock-out stages hanging by the proverbial thread, if at all. But in terms of claiming small victories within the larger picture Edinburgh coach Rob Moffat is urging his troops to again prove themselves as a major player with a win on French soil.

Edinburgh were the first Scottish district/pro team to claim a win in France when a Gordon Ross-inspired team defeated Biarritz in the Catalans' own backyard in the 1997/98 Challenge Cup tournament. They had already lost at home to the French side, but finished that season's European sojourn with a home win over Perpignan.

Since then Toulouse have been toppled at home in the main event, the Heineken Cup of 2003/04, the same year that Glasgow were striking their first win on French soil against Montpellier in the Challenge Cup affair; Perpignan and Stade Francais beaten at home, and Castres, in 2008/09, the first French scalp that Edinburgh claimed home and away. These results have gone a long way to affirming Edinburgh as a genuine threat, at least in the pool stages, of the Heineken Cup.

Again, however, just as Edinburgh's hopes in 2008/09 were decimated by home and away defeats to Wasps and Leinster, losses this season at Cardiff and home to Northampton have left the Scots with another European mountain to climb.

Coach Rob Moffat was Andy Robinson's assistant when Edinburgh last travelled across the Channel to the Stade Pierre Antoine and watched his team claim a fine 13-6 win, and he is drawing on that to help motivate the current Edinburgh squad to another inspiring French double.

The Edinburgh starting line-up for Saturday's game features eight men who contributed to the 2008 success - Chris Paterson, Ben Cairns, Scott Newlands, Allan Jacobsen, Ross Ford and Geoff Cross all started and David Blair and John Houston came off the bench.

Greig Laidlaw was an unused replacement, but he starts this weekend after concerns over Mike Blair's fitness after successive head knocks were exacerbated by an elbow injury. Cairns and Houston also return at the expense of Alex Grove and David Bishop, while Jacobsen and Ford come back for Kyle Traynor and Andrew Kelly respectively. Talented lock Steven Turnbull makes his first start of the season in the second row after overcoming injuries, and alongside Fraser McKenzie will find himself up against a former Edinburgh and Scotland lock in Scott Murray, while Newlands replaces Netani Talei at blindside flanker and so will face the dangerous Steve Malonga.

Tim Visser is out with a stomach bug, so Lee Jones steps in for his first Heineken Cup appearance and Scotland winger Simon Webster makes his first appearance in the squad since April after battling an Achilles problem.

Moffat spoke earlier this week about the strength of the challenge faced by everyone, from every player that takes the field to the coaches. But in the Castres cauldron, the set-piece will be a major area of contest tonight.

Moffat has a good deal of experience of games against French opposition and has Tom Smith as his forwards coach to mine more insight from, the former Scotland and British and Irish Lions prop having played for Brive in the French top flight, as well as Northampton in Europe.

They are acutely aware of the size of the test awaiting the pack, therefore, but Moffat stated: "We also have a really strong front row, the same one that served us well over there last time, and we'll be looking to these guys again to give us a solid platform. Steven Turnbull hasn't had much luck with injury this season, but he's another who deserves his chance, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how he and Fraser (McKenzie] go as a pair."

It will ask a lot of a relatively fresh-faced back row in a ferocious battle for possession, but the quality of the Edinburgh bench could also be significant as if the first XV can hang in with the power of the Castres pack until the second half, dent their attack and ask some questions of their own, the presence of experiences figures such as Esteban Lozada, Andrew Kelly, Webster and the energy of youngsters Traynor, Alan MacDonald, James King and Grove in particular could give Edinburgh hope of another fine French win.

At this stage, with Castres coming to Murrayfield next weekend, and irrespective of what it might mean to European hopes, that would be a major coup.

Castres: R Teulet; V Inigo, R Cabannes, J Tatupu, M Andreu; C McIntyre, A Albouy; C Hoeft, B Kayser, L Ducalcon, S Murray, K Kulemin, S Malonga, C Masoe, I Tekori.Subs: M Bonello, M Coetzee, D Saayman, R Capo Ortega, I Darra, T Sanchou, PM Garcia, P Bernard.

Edinburgh: C Paterson; J Thompson, B Cairns, J Houston, L Jones; D Blair, G Laidlaw; A Jacobsen, R Ford, G Cross, F McKenzie, S Turnbull, S Newlands, R Rennie, R Grant (capt). Subs: A Kelly, K Traynor, D Young, E Lozada, A MacDonald, J King, A Grove, S Webster.