Edinburgh Rugby backed to overcome loss of Scotland locks as youngster catches eye

Edinburgh forwards coach Stevie Lawrie has backed the club’s senior locks to step up after Scotland internationals Sam Skinner and Glen Young were both ruled out for the first chunk of the season.

Skinner won’t be available until early November after undergoing knee surgery in the close season. Young, meanwhile, is not expected to return until late October as he recovers from the pectoral injury sustained during Scotland’s summer tour.

Edinburgh return to action on Friday when they host Gloucester in a pre-season match at Hive Stadium. They open their United Rugby Championship campaign at home to Leinster a week later before heading to South Africa to play the Bulls and Lions. It’s a tough start but one they should embrace, according to Lawrie, who is confident that the club’s strength in depth in the second row can offset the loss of Skinner and Young.

Sam Skinner is expected to return for Edinburgh Rugby in November following a knee operation. (Photo by Ross Parker / SNS Group)

“[In terms of] senior locks, we’ve still got Jamie Hodgson, Marshall Sykes, Grant Gilchrist,” said Lawrie. “It’s [also] an opportunity for Rob Carmichael to come in, and Euan McVie has been training regularly with the main team. Plus we’ve got a few hybrid players that could jump up into that second row. Magnus [Bradbury] could scrummage in there - he’s done it before - and also Tom Dodd. So we’re blessed in terms of that back-five depth.”

Skinner missed the first half of last season due to a knee injury and underwent a clean-up operation on the same knee over the summer. The timing of his return means he is likely to miss at least the start of Scotland’s autumn Test series which begins on November 2 against Fiji and continues over three subsequent weekends as South Africa, Portugal and Australia come to Murrayfield.

“He had a clean-up, the operation went well and we expect him to be back in November,” confirmed Lawrie. “It’s the same knee. To his credit, he’s a tough lad and he gets on with things but we felt to give him the best chance to put his game out there, you don’t want to always be managing a grumbly knee, so it was right that he got the surgery and it’s gone well. He’s back running.”

In the meantime, Lawrie hopes the younger locks at the club see this as an opportunity. McVie in particular caught the coach’s eye during the Scotland Under-20 side’s successful World U20 Trophy campaign over the summer.

“I really like him,” said Lawrie. “He’s physical, and actually, if you look at his rugby growth, it’s exponential given the fact I think he played half a game of 10s in his sixth year at school. He’s then played for Scotland Under-20s and done really well.

“He’s very impactful on the ball - you see him when he carries and he goes. I think he’s somebody that is definitely pushing. He’s obviously got a few guys ahead of him at the minute, but I’d like to see him come through.”

The better news for Edinburgh is that their star back-three players Darcy Graham and Emiliano Boffelli are both ready to return after missing large parts of last season. However, centre Jamie Lang is likely to miss “a number of weeks” after sustaining a quad injury in training.