Key Edinburgh Rugby duo to miss first month of season but Scotland quartet available for Dragons opener

Jamie Ritchie was injured on Scotland duty and won't play for Edinburgh until next month at the earliest.

Duhan van der Merwe and Hamish Watson are still on rest periods following the tournament, but four other members of the Scotland squad – stand-off Ben Healy and forwards Javan Sebastian, Sam Skinner and Luke Crosbie – are all available for Saturday’s opening match of the season, away to the Dragons.

“We’ll see how they get through the planning and preparation, but if we want to select them they are available,” Everitt said of the quartet. “Darcy Graham and Jamie Ritchie are carrying injuries from the World Cup, so they won’t be available for some time. It could be four to six weeks.

“Duhan van der Merwe is going to have extra time off right now. We’re looking for Duhan to be available for the Leinster game, which is in round three. Scottish Rugby have [return-to-play] protocols [for some players], and Hamish is one of those players. But he’ll be returning on Monday.”

Graham injured a hip in the defeat by Ireland that knocked Scotland out of the tournament, while Ritchie was forced off in the first half of that game with a rib injury, but now has a shoulder issue, according to the capital club. Meanwhile, Dave Cherry, whose involvement in the competition was ended by concussion sustained in a fall at the team hotel, is fit again – although it remains to be seen if he will be in the squad for the trip to Newport.

“It took him a while to get over the concussion,” Everitt said of the hooker. “He’s well and healthy, and he’s got a new member to the family, which is very exciting for them, and he seems to have settled down well at home. So we’re excited to have him back, and I’m sure he’ll be eager to put his hand up for selection later on with Scotland in the Six Nations.”

With Emiliano Boffelli due to play in Argentina’s semi-final against New Zealand on Friday, and Viliame Mata having played in Fiji’s narrow loss to England three days ago, Edinburgh will be well below full strength on Saturday. Even so, the availability of the four returning Scots will be a significant boost to morale, with the presence of Ben Healy being particularly noteworthy.

The stand-off was successful with all 11 of his kicks at goal in Scotland’s win over Romania - a feat that heartened Everitt, who has identified his new team’s goal-kicking as one of the things most in need of attention as they bid to improve on last season’s lowly 12th place. “The team only kicked 62 per cent accuracy, which was a big part of their downfall in the tournament,” he continued. “There were only a couple of points in it between 12th and the top eight, so we need to nail those points, and Ben can certainly do it for us.”

Meanwhile, Glasgow also have some of their Scotland players back, but they are keeping their cards closer to their chests as they prepare to play Leinster at Scotstoun on Sunday. “Some players are back and they are in and around the building,” Warriors assistant coach Al Dickinson said. “Some guys we are trying to hold back, because they’ve had a frustrating World Cup. They come back in dribs and drabs. But hopefully we can get our hands on them and they are keen to play as soon as possible.”