'Make or break' season for Edinburgh Rugby youngster who came out on top against Siya Kolisi

There’s no disguising Ben Muncaster’s enthusiasm for the new season and it's hardly surprising given the torrid time he had with injuries last year.

The Edinburgh forward is champing at the bit to be involved in the match against Gloucester at Hive Stadium on Friday night. It may only be a pre-season friendly but Muncaster is, in his own words, “absolutely buzzing”.

There is an understandable need to shake off the frustration of the last Edinburgh campaign which amounted to just three matches for Muncaster - a start against the Stormers and appearances off the bench against Connacht and Ospreys - and a disappointing 10th place finish in the URC.

Edinburgh Rugby's Ben Muncaster puts in the hard yards during a training session at Hive Stadium ahead of the Gloucester pre-season match. (Photo by Ross Parker / SNS Group)

A knee injury followed by a foot injury meant Muncaster was unable to build on the promise of the two previous campaigns, and in particular 2021-22 which was a breakthrough season for the No 8 and suggested good things lay ahead for the abrasive and athletic back-rower who former Edinburgh coach Mike Blair described as “a real power athlete”.

At 22, Muncaster still has plenty of time to fulfil his undoubted potential but it’s stark to hear him talking about the new season as being “make or break”. He is entering the final year of his contract at Edinburgh and admits such deadlines focus the mind.

“I mean it gives that extra bit of pressure, but I absolutely love that, so we’ll see what happens,” he says.

For now, the focus is on Gloucester and putting down a marker for the season.

“What a challenge,” Muncaster adds. “I remember Matt [Scott, his Edinburgh team-mate] speaking when we were in a psychology meeting a couple of weeks ago, and I remember Matt saying that we are going to go into every single week having a full-on belief that we are going to win that game, and fully back the plan that the coaches and the players come up with.

“We’re going to take it week-by-week, and we’re absolutely buzzing. In terms of individually, it is a bit of a make-or-break year for me – I am just looking forward to Gloucester.”

Last season started badly for Muncaster when he injured his knee, damaging the posterior cruciate ligament. A foot injury followed and he was unable to find any momentum. There was the odd outing in the Super Series and then the sporadic appearances for Edinburgh but he had little opportunity to impress new coach Sean Everitt. It also meant he didn’t have the necessary game time to stake a claim for Scotland’s summer tour of North and South America which was particularly vexing. Muncaster had been part of the national squad which travelled to South America two years previously and played in the A international against Chile. This year’s tour was used as an opportunity to try out young players but Muncaster had to watch from afar. Could the enforced summer break benefit him in the long term as he looks to establish himself again at Edinburgh?

“Yeah, I guess so, but I 100 per cent would have preferred to be playing there and just enjoying the experience, and getting a couple of caps to my name – so that’s all I am focussing on for this season,” he says. “Obviously I didn’t get as much game-time last year as I would have liked, but, hey-ho, it’s one of those things and you’ve just got to move on from it and now we are onto this season.”

“Listen, adversity came our way,” he adds. “I did my PCL, came back for a couple of games and started playing well, then did my foot and I couldn’t really hit the ground running after that which was extremely frustrating. Then I missed out on the summer tour, which I was absolutely gutted about, but, hey, I’m here now, I’m going to be playing against Gloucester so that’s all I’m focussing on.”

Muncaster was Edinburgh’s young player of the year in 2021-22 and trained with Scotland during that season’s Six Nations before being selected for the summer tour. But perhaps the highlight of that breakthrough campaign was his performance in Edinburgh’s win over the Sharks in rain-battered Durban as the capital club became the first team from the northern hemisphere to win a United Rugby Championship match in South Africa. Siya Kolisi, the Springboks’ World Cup-winning captain, was part of the Sharks team which was coached by Everitt.

It hasn’t been plain sailing for Muncaster since those heady days. Injuries, dips in form and Edinburgh’s travails are all obstacles to be overcome and he agrees that dealing with them can make him stronger

“Absolutely. It makes or breaks players, and I feel I mentally a lot stronger and also a lot more knowledgeable about the game, so, once again, I am buzzing for Gloucester.”

After that, the real business of the United Rugby Championship begins, with Edinburgh at home to Leinster on September 20 in round one. They then head to South Africa to take on the Bulls and Lions before returning home to host the Stormers. It’s a tough start, pitting the capital club against four teams who finished above them last season, but Muncaster believes Edinburgh are more than ready.

“I think the squad is extremely competitive in a number of positions – we’ve got very few injuries so everyone is absolutely fighting for a starting position – and obviously Gloucester is the next game but Leinster under the Friday night lights in about a week and a half, what an opportunity and everybody would love to be a part of that, so we’ll just see what happens.”