It's winner-takes-all for Edinburgh Rugby as they seek to scratch seven-year itch amid dangerous lurkers

When Sean Everitt was unveiled as Edinburgh’s new coach on August 30 last year he made it clear what his targets were.

“Success for Edinburgh would be to get back into the top eight and qualify for the Champions Cup,” said the South African. Nine months later and the club find themselves on the cusp of realising their aims but a treacherous final step awaits. You have to go back to 2017 for the last time Edinburgh beat Benetton in Treviso but that is almost certainly what they will have to do in their final game of the regular league season on Saturday if they are to meet their twin targets.

Dougie Fyfe, with two, and Sam Hidalgo-Clyne were the try-scorers that day in a 24-13 win and, if you are looking for omens, the match referee was Ben Whitehouse. The Welshman is the man in the middle again on Saturday in what will be his 100th league game in charge.

Seven years is a long time to go without a win at Stadio Monigo but Benetton have turned their ground into something of a fortress in recent seasons. Their only home defeat in any competition in this campaign was the 19-9 loss to Glasgow in round 11 of the United Rugby Championship.

They are neck and neck with Edinburgh going into this match, with 49 points apiece from 17 games, but the Scottish side sit seventh and Benetton are eighth because Edinburgh have more wins, the first criterion used to separate sides who are level. Top eight guarantees teams a place in the URC play-offs but you need to finish in the top seven to qualify for next season’s Champions Cup due to the 13th-placed Sharks snaffling one of the spots by winning the Challenge Cup.

It’s not quite win or bust for Edinburgh. A victory secures either side a place in the top-eight, but an equal league-point draw guarantees a play-off position for the visitors because of their better win record (11 to Benetton’s 10). Even a defeat could see Edinburgh make the play-offs, particularly if they pick up a bonus point, but the highest they could finish would be eighth, which would mean missing out on the Champions Cup. Such a scenario would also be dependent on other results going their way. They would need the Stormers to beat the ninth-placed Lions in Cape Town in a match which kicks off 15 minutes before Edinburgh’s. The Lions also have 49 points but currently sit below Edinburgh and Benetton, just outside of the play-off positions, because they have won only nine games this season.

Connacht and Ospreys are four points further back on 45 points but both could still make the top eight. They are dangerous lurkers. In short, Edinburgh could save themselves a lot of aggravation and complication by getting the job done in Treviso. “This is a cup final for us,” acknowledged Everitt. “We know what’s at stake and we’re treating it with the importance it deserves. It’s winner-takes-all for a play-off spot and the boys are focused on delivering a performance that gets us over the line.”

Centre James Lang will play at full-back for Edinburgh in their winner-takes-all clash with Benetton in Treviso. (Photo by Ross Parker / SNS Group)

To Everitt’s credit, Edinburgh are much improved this season and a big part of that has been their better away form. They’ve won four and lost four in the URC, their most notable success being the win at Ulster in December.

The coach’s mantra throughout the campaign has been that 12 wins would be enough for the play-offs and his aim has been seven home wins and five away. The first part has been achieved and a win in Italy would tick off part two. Edinburgh endured an abject campaign last season which saw them finish 12th and Everitt was initially brought in to replace Mike Blair on a one-year deal and given the title “senior coach”. This was upgraded to “head coach” in January when he signed a two-year contract extension after Edinburgh’s win over Glasgow Warriors in front of a club-record 37,904 crowd at Murrayfield elevated them to fifth place in the URC.

There has been slippage since and Edinburgh’s season now hinges on what unfolds in Treviso. Their cause has not been helped by multiple injury issues in the back three and centre James Lang will be redeployed at full-back on Saturday, with the inexperienced but talented Jake Henry returning from injury to play on the right wing.

It’s still a strong looking team, particularly up front where Everitt is able to select an all-international pack. It won’t be a day for the faint-hearted but with players of the calibre and character of Pierre Schoeman, Ewan Ashman, WP Nel, Sam Skinner, Grant Gilchrist, Jamie Ritchie, Luke Crosbie and Viliame Mata, Edinburgh have enough skill and grit to ensure their season doesn’t end prematurely for the second year in a row.

Benetton v Edinburgh Rugby: URC, Stadio Monigo, Treviso, Saturday, 1pm BST. TV: live on Premier Sports.

Benetton: Rhyno Smith; Ignacio Mendy, Tommaso Menoncello, Ignacio Brex, Onisi Ratave; Tomas Albornoz, Andy Uren; Thomas Gallo, Giacomo Nicotera, Simione Ferrari, Niccolò Cannone, Eli Snyman, Alessandro Izekor, Michele Lamaro (capt), Toa Halafihi. Replacements: Gianmarco Lucchesi, Mirco Spagnolo, Giosuè Zilocchi, Edoardo Iachizzi, Lorenzo Cannone, Alessandro Garbisi, Jacob Umaga, Marco Zanon

Edinburgh: James Lang; Jake Henry, Matt Currie, Chris Dean, Duhan van der Merwe; Ben Healy, Ali Price; Pierre Schoeman, Ewan Ashman, WP Nel, Sam Skinner, Grant Gilchrist (capt), Jamie Ritchie, Luke Crosbie, Viliame Mata. Replacements: Dave Cherry, Boan Venter, Javan Sebastian, Marshall Sykes, Hamish Watson, Ben Vellacott, Cammy Scott, Mark Bennett.

Referee: Ben Whitehouse (WRU).