Edinburgh Rugby's morale is raised as Luke Crosbie quizzed on which Glasgow Warrior he will wind up

Luke Crosbie believes Edinburgh’s 52-12 win over Bayonne on Friday night was “a real confidence-booster” ahead of the 1872 Cup double-header against Glasgow.

The win at the Hive over the French side not only put the capital club back on track to qualify for the knockout stages of the Challenge Cup, it was also arguably their most well-rounded performance of the season. Eight tries showcased the home team’s attack at its sharpest, while a strong defensive performance against tricky opposition was another encouraging sign.

“We knew Bayonne were going to come out and try and play fast, but we just needed to stick to our game,” back-row forward Crosbie said. “At the start of the second half it was a bit shaky: they came out firing.

Luke Crosbie takes the game to Bayonne in Edinburgh Rugby's victory. | SNS Group

“But I think we just stuck to our process, never got rattled by it. Then it opened up near the end of the match, so it was good.

“There's bits of the game we're really happy with, so it's a real confidence-booster for us. We're just looking forward to getting stuck into the Glasgow boys next.”

In addition to his customary hard work on both sides of the ball, Crosbie made a significant contribution to his team’s cause by getting Bayonne flanker Esteban Capilla yellow-carded for a dangerous tackle in the first half. Magnus Bradbury had been sent to the sin bin minutes earlier for a similar offence, but before the Frenchmen could profit, Capilla was apparently unable to resist a bit of banter from the Edinburgh openside.

“[I was] just making it interesting, just trying to wind him up a little bit, because he was the one defending me,” Crosbie explained. “So I was like, ‘If I wind him up a little bit here, he'll come flying out the line’.

Edinburgh Rugby celebrate their win. | SNS Group

“He came flying out the line and I just tipped [the ball] to Schoemy [Pierre Schoeman]. So it worked out well in my head.”

Asked which Glasgow forward he plans to wind up on Sunday, Crosbie added: “I don't know - we'll just see what happens. See who's a bit niggly that day and just try and make it entertaining for everyone.”