Edinburgh Rugby's Roddy Grant ready to walk a tightrope at Ravenhill

Not in any literal sense will Grant be performing a high-wire act, of course. Rather, as a back-row forward he has to decide how far to push the offside line and occasionally he gets things wrong. It happened last time out and while no serious harm was done, on other occasions the type of yellow card collected for deliberately straying too far and 'killing' opposition possession might have been costly in terms of the result.

The good news is that nobody knows it better than the amiable Botswana-born star, which doesn't change the fact that the balance must be struck at Ravenhill where the outcome and ultimately qualification for knock-out ties could come down to inches gained here and there.

Edinburgh coach Rob Moffat has spoken of his displeasure at penalties being conceded in last weekend's win over Cardiff and in many ways it is a thankless task for the likes of Grant for, if nothing untoward occurs in the eyes of the referee, his efforts are largely taken for granted.

Equally, Moffat is well aware of the worth of the unsung grafters of which Grant is not only one but a thoroughly honest type whose catharsis about leaving the team with 14 men down the home straight is absolute.

"In hindsight I should not have pushed the boundaries so much at the end of the game," he says.

"It was disappointing to put the team under pressure in those last five minutes (when he was in the sin-bin)."

The trick will be how Grant – he was 'binned at Glasgow on 27 December but that can be excused on grounds of rough and tumble with John Barclay in a physical contact game where provocation and retribution often go hand-in-hand and inevitably spills over occasionally – manages to keep treading the line and in one important respect he will be on firm ground this weekend.

For a fixture with Ulster takes Grant back to where he first stepped on to the pro stage with Edinburgh having earlier had a taster as a one-off substitute with the now defunct Border Reivers.

Not only that but of his 16 appearances for Edinburgh three have produced victories over the Northern Irishmen. Little wonder Grant could easily be regarded as a talisman although with typical modesty he refers to the collective boost that comes from regularly winning the fixture. "Having won previously on a ground puts you slightly at ease," said Grant in recalling how Edinburgh had gone to Ravenhill and posted a 16-13 success at the start of this season.

One difference this time round, and compared also with those two Murrayfield victories over Ulster this season both in Celtic league and European Cup, is the likelihood of Grant continuing to turn out at No.8 as opposed to his usual flanker role.

It was an exercise prompted by the late withdrawal of Alan MacDonald suffering from a virus and a back row reshuffle but Grant took to the task instantly showing control at the scrum base but more noticeably outstanding drive in gaining yards on the pick-up.

Playing down his contribution, he said: "I really enjoyed getting my hands on the ball but a lot of the go-forward was down to some awesome scrummaging by our big guys like Jim Hamilton, Scott Newlands and Scott Macleod."

Maybe so but the new year has started with Grant demonstrating extra versatility which might not have gone unnoticed in high places as the Six Nations looms.

Meantime, the player who qualifies for Scotland through his parentage is concentrating only on Ulster, adding:

"It is about Edinburgh and what for us is a must-win match."