'Soft moments' - Edinburgh Rugby relying on others as play-off hopes recede

Sean Everitt was left to rue “soft moments defensively” as his Edinburgh team lost ground in the race for a play-off place in the United Rugby Championship with a draw against Zebre in Italy.

With two rounds remaining of the regular season, the capital side face an uphill battle to secure an all-important top-eight finish. Their remaining URC fixtures are against Connacht in Galway on May 10 and Ulster at home six days later and they are likely to have to win both and rely on favours from others.

Edinburgh have not qualified for the play-offs since 2022 and missing out for a third successive year would heap pressure on Everitt who is in his second season in charge.

Cammy Scott's late conversion earned Edinburgh a draw with Zebre in Parma. | SNS Group

His team needed a last-gasp converted try to rescue two points in the 25-25 draw in Parma. Matt Currie got the all important touchdown and replacement stand-off Cammy Scott kept his cool to land the conversion at Stadio Lanfranchi.

“I’m disappointed that we didn’t get the win,” said Everitt. “There were some really good moments in the game that I’m proud of, but we needed to get four or five points. We didn’t do that, so I’m disappointed.

“There’s a lot to be positive about. But defensively we weren’t good enough. A couple of soft moments defensively, particularly in the first half, probably cost us the game. It was always going to be tough, and it was going to be a close game. We do pride ourselves on how we defend, and I think that let us down.”

Edinburgh’s other points came from two Boan Venter tries, and two penalties and a conversion from Ross Thompson but Everitt conceded that bonus-point wins in each of their final two fixtures may not be enough to make the play-offs. The maximum number of points Edinburgh can now accumulate is 49 which was the total they got last season when they finished 10th.

“There’s always a chance on 49 points,” Everitt told the club’s website. “But I think 51 makes it safe, so we’re going to have to rely on other results to get through now.”

Edinburgh now take a break from the URC to prepare for Saturday's EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final against Bath at Hive Stadium. It's their first European semi for 10 years and an eagerly anticipated showdown with the English Premiership leaders who have been in sparkling form this season, with Scotland stand-off Finn Russell pulling the strings.