How Edinburgh Rugby could equal Glasgow Warriors despite selection complications
After the doom and gloom which followed their heavy defeat by the Lions, Edinburgh now find themselves in a position where they could potentially draw level with Glasgow Warriors going into the international break.
Sean Everitt’s side take on the Ospreys in Bridgend on Saturday knowing that a bonus-point win against the United Rugby Championship’s basement side would move them on to 18 points. Glasgow have already accumulated that number but have a tricky game in South Africa against the Stormers.
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Hide AdEdinburgh have recovered well since that fateful day in Johannesburg when they shipped 48 first-half points before eventually losing 55-21. Home wins, with bonus points, over the Stormers and Cardiff have lifted them into the top eight and they will look to repeat the trick at Brewery Field. But they will have to attempt to do so without a raft of frontline performers. Darcy Graham, Ali Price, Pierre Schoeman and Grant Gilchrist are following rest protocols ahead of Scotland’s autumn internationals. All four have played in all five of Edinburgh’s games this season.
Magnus Bradbury, another ever present, and Paddy Harrison are also rested and Everitt has made seven changes in total to his starting team.
The newcomers include Harry Paterson who will make is first appearance of the season after recovering from a foot injury. Paterson, who this week was named in the Scotland squad, starts at full-back after a couple of outings for Edinburgh’s second string A team. His inclusion sees Wes Goosen move to the wing in place of Graham.
Mosese Tuipulotu, another selected by Gregor Townsend on Wednesday, drops to the bench this weekend, opening the door for Matt Scott to return at inside centre and make his 100th appearance for Edinburgh across three spells at the club.
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Hide AdScott rejoined his hometown team in the summer after his departure from Leicester and Everitt said he has had a big influence on and off the pitch.
“It’s great having an old boy back at the club,” said the coach. “He’s got high standards and sets himself high standards. When we had a conversation around him returning to Edinburgh after he left Leicester, he said to me, ‘I don’t want to be a training number at Edinburgh. I’m going to fight for a start’. And he's certainly done that. He's put in some great performances for the club. He's been really good in the leadership group as well. He’s helped the youngsters around him. And he's certainly added some good advice to all within and around the squad and set good examples of how to go day by day as a living professional.”
Elsewhere, Ben Vellacott replaces Price at scrum-half and captains the team; Hamish Watson comes in at openside, with Ben Muncaster moving over to No 8 in place of Bradbury; Jamie Ritchie takes over from the benched Luke Crosbie on the other side of the back row; Jamie Hodgson is selected in the second row in Gilchrist’s absence and Ewan Ashman is at hooker instead of Harrison.
Ben Healy also returns to the squad and is named on the bench after being dropped to the A team after the Lions defeat. Everitt praised the stand-off’s attitude. “He’s a strong character, he wants to get better and sometimes you need to go back to the drawing board and he’s certainly performed well in the A-team games,” said the coach.
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Hide AdOspreys v Edinburgh (URC, Dunraven Brewery Field, Bridgend, Saturday, 3pm)
Ospreys: Jack Walsh; Dan Kasende, Owen Watkin, Keiran Williams, Keelan Giles; Owen Williams, Reuben Morgan-Williams; Gareth Thomas, Dewi Lake, Ben Warren, Will Greatbanks, Adam Beard, Jac Morgan (capt), Justin Tipuric, Morgan Morris. Replacements: Sam Parry, Garyn Phillips, Tom Botha, Lewis Jones, Lewis Lloyd, Kieran Hardy, Tom Florence, Iestyn Hopkins.
Edinburgh: Harry Paterson; Wes Goosen, Matt Currie, Matt Scott, Duhan van der Merwe; Ross Thompson, Ben Vellacott (capt); Boan Venter, Ewan Ashman, D’Arcy Rae, Marshall Sykes, Jamie Hodgson, Jamie Ritchie, Hamish Watson, Ben Muncaster. Replacements: Dave Cherry, Angus Williams, Paul Hill, Glen Young, Luke Crosbie, Charlie Shiel, Ben Healy, Mosese Tuipulotu.
Referee: Griffin Colby (SARU).
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