Young insists all-star Cardiff can shine at Murrayfield

TWO teams will clash at Murrayfield desperate to revive a season beginning to drift, and Cardiff coach Dai Young acknowledged yesterday that it had been so poor lately that an improved performance from his own side was his priority.

The Blues are currently in eighth spot in the Magners League table, having won just four games, none of them away. Their last win over Edinburgh in Scotland was nearly two years ago – a 20-0 win in March, 2008. And yet, Young is aware that a place in the top four and play-off spot is still well within reach as his team are just seven points behind Munster and Leinster in third, while a bonus point win this weekend could take them beyond Edinburgh on points difference.

"We haven't really taken off this season and haven't put an 80 minutes performance together," said Young. "I'm confident that when we can get some continuity in our selection, and somewhere near our best team on the field, we will start to play the way we can.

"At this moment we've got to start producing better performances and start picking up points. This is when players, coaches and everybody have got to earn their stripes and look at where things are going wrong and hopefully start putting things together. We've had a couple of glimpses of what we can do and a couple of false dawns so we'll be looking for an improved performance against Edinburgh this Saturday."

Those "false dawns" came last month with victories over Connacht and the Dragons, the latter a 42-13 hammering in front of more than 15,000 supporters at the new Cardiff City Stadium. But then came a a deflating 26-0 reverse away to the Ospreys.

Young has had injury woes and tonight is without quintet Tom Shanklin, Gary Powell, Robin Sowden Taylor, Sam Warburton and Gareth Williams while Lions prop Gethin Jenkins and All Black No8 Xavier Rush are being rested ahead of their return to Heineken Cup duty, with Sale and Harlequins on the horizon and an outside chance of landing a place in the quarter-finals.

Yet, such is Cardiff's spending power – they may have the biggest budget in the league – the back line boasts a midfield pairing of All Black Casey Laulala and Jamie Roberts, a star of the Lions tour last summer, while Andries Pretorius, Martyn Williams and Andy Powell present a formidable back-row challenge, with mobile captain Paul Tito playing in the second row, to a host side struggling with its breakdown work.

Ceri Sweeney is also back at stand-off after promising displays off the bench against the Dragons and Ospreys, while Leigh Halfpenny, the British and Irish Lions winger, is back from injury for a run at full-back in the absence of All Black Ben Blair. That could be crucial if the match hinges on goal-kicks, as a win of any shape or form would do Cardiff just fine right now.