Duhan van der Merwe relishing returning to Edinburgh with increased competition

Duhan van der Merwe was not away from Edinburgh for too long, but a lot changed in his absence. And, while the 27-year-old believes he is essentially the same player he was before he left the capital for Worcester Warriors in the summer of last year, he is also very hopeful that those changes will make him an even better player.

Duhan van der Merwe during Edinburgh Rugby media access at the DAM Health Stadium, on October 11, 2022, in Edinburgh, Scotland. (Photo by Ross Parker / SNS Group)

The fact that Mike Blair is head coach rather than Richard Cockerill is arguably the most fundamental difference between Van der Merwe’s first spell with Edinburgh and now, and the winger is convinced that the far more expansive style adopted by Blair is ideally suited to his game. But there have been some notable alterations to the squad too – with alterations to the back three in particular that mean the new arrival believes he is by no means guaranteed a place in the starting line-up.

Since Van der Merwe brought his four-year stint with Edinburgh to an end in the middle of 2021, Emiliano Boffelli, Henry Immelman and Wes Goosen have all been added to the playing roster. Injury has so far prevented Goosen from making his debut, but the other two have made significant contributions to the team’s upturn in fortunes. Factor in Damien Hoyland and Darcy Graham, two back-three players who have played alongside Van der Merwe before, and the competition for places in jerseys 11, 14 and 15 becomes all the hotter.

“The depth in our back three is frightening,” Van der Merwe said yesterday after training with his new team-mates, having signed for Edinburgh last week after Worcester went into liquidation. “The depth we have is a joke.

“The competition is just going to make me a better player. If you start on a Saturday and have a seven-out-of-ten game you will be on the bench next weekend.

“That’s what I love about the competition we have going on in the squad. It’s exciting times.

“Boffelli is really good – we saw how good he was in the summer [when playing for Argentina against Scotland] and how good he is under the high ball. Darcy has brilliant feet and he is playing the best I’ve ever seen him play.

“And my mate Henry Immelman – I played with him at Montpellier – he’s a bit of a freak. He loves running over people.

“I could speak about Damo [Hoyland], so many other guys. It’s good to have that competition in the squad.”

Van der Merwe declined to comment when asked if he would have thought twice about returning to Edinburgh had Cockerill still been at the helm. But he did insist that Blair’s being the incumbent made his decision to come back all the easier.

“I’ve been watching Edinburgh for a long time now, and play under Mike Blair is really exciting,” he continued. “As a winger I’m looking to get more ball, and that really excites me as I love attacking. The way they have been playing is just great.

“I really enjoyed my time at Worcester, but when the opportunity came to come back to Edinburgh it was a no-brainer. I didn't even want to look elsewhere.

“When I knew Edinburgh were interested I said to my agent ‘That’s where I want to go’. Mike's brought me in and I’m very grateful for that."