Hamish Watson signs new deal with Edinburgh, outlines trophy aim and bid to win back Scotland place

Hamish Watson has signed a new contract with Edinburgh which will extend his stay with the capital team into a 14th season.

The Scotland flanker, who has agreed a one-year deal with the option to extend for a further year, has outlined his ambitions to win a major trophy with the club and regain his place in the national side.

Watson, 32, has made over 150 appearances for Edinburgh since joining from the Leicester Tigers academy as a teenager in 2011. He has also won 59 caps for Scotland and one for the British and Irish Lions but found himself in and out of Gregor Townsend’s squad during the recent Six Nations and never actually got any game-time.

“I still want to try and get in the mix with Scotland and play for Scotland - that’s always been my aim in rugby,” said Watson. “It’s a massive honour to represent my country. But if that doesn’t come, you actually end up playing more for Edinburgh, so that works for me as well.”

Edinburgh's Hamish Watson scores a try against Ospreys. The back-row forward has signed a new contract. (Picture: Ewan Bootman - SNS Group)

The forward said the decision to re-sign for Edinburgh was not a difficult one and was influenced by the recent announcement that coach Sean Everitt had committed his future to the club.

“I think any player at my stage of their career will look at options,” said Watson. “In the end, when you get to my stage of career and you have a family as well, it comes down to a bit more than just a rugby decision.

“I love playing for this club - this is my 13th season here and will be my 14th when I go into next year. This club is really home for me, and also I have to say the coaching staff played a part in it as well - Sean’s signing on for another two years. I get on really well with him and I think what he has done here so far has been really positive. So that played a part, and like I say ultimately it comes down to your family as well.”

Watson was part of the Edinburgh side that lost to Gloucester in the final of the European Challenge Cup in 2015 but a major trophy has remained elusive and it is something he would like to rectify before he leaves the club.

“That’s our aim. That’s the aim of all the guys that have been in the squad for a long time. We’ve never won anything - the closest we came was in 2015 when we went to that final at the Stoop and lost to Gloucester. Don’t get me wrong, every player wants to win something, but we spoke about it in meetings - it’s one thing saying it and another doing it. I definitely think we’ve got the squad to do it, we’ve got everything in place to do it, but sometimes we need to actually get things done as well. So the aim is to get to play-offs.”

Edinburgh host Bayonne on Saturday in the last 16 of the Challenge Cup and they are one place off the play-off positions in the United Rugby Championship, with five rounds of fixtures remaining.

“We’re in the play-offs in the EPCR and we’ve got a great opportunity this weekend to progress in that tournament, but we’ve just now got to take every game as it comes,” added Watson.

“In the URC we’ve dropped down to ninth now after two losses in a row, so we know how tight the URC is as well. I think we’ve got five games left in that, and every game will be basically a play-off game for us now until the end of the season - which is exciting for players as well, because that’s what you want to be involved in, when every game actually matters and really means something.”