Glasgow v Edinburgh in Six Nations clash as new 1872 Cup dates announced

Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh Rugby will be without their Scotland internationalists for the rearranged first leg of their 1872 Cup showdown due to a clash with the Six Nations.

Edinburgh's Grant Gilchrist and Stuart McInally are pictured with the 1872 Cup, new dates for which have now been confirmed (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

The traditional festive season double-header was postponed in December due to a Covid outbreak at Glasgow, with the Scotstoun leg now taking place on Friday, March 18, the night before Scotland face Ireland in their Six Nations finale in Dublin.

The second and decisive 1872 Cup leg at Murrayfield Stadium has been scheduled for two months later on the final weekend of the URC season across May 20, 21 or 22, with the exact date and kick-off time yet to be confirmed.

In order to accommodate the changes, the Glasgow v Munster and Leinster v Edinburgh ties initially scheduled to take place in Round 18 will now be played on Friday, February 11, which has also resulted in the postponed Munster v Leinster derby being moved to the final weekend of the campaign.

The new date for the 1872 Cup first leg will see both sides missing the bulk of their squads with 13 Edinburgh players and 11 from Glasgow called up to Gregor Townsend’s Six Nations squad as things stands.

A URC statement explained: “Due to the lack of available weekends beyond the Six Nations window it was not possible to schedule this game at another time with any certainty.”

Both Scottish sides welcomed the new dates, with Edinburgh managing director, Douglas Struth, branding it a “fantastic solution” while his Warriors counterpart Ali Kellock stated: “We’re pleased to have clarity … and to be able to play these fixtures in front of crowds.”

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