THE STORY SO FAR
With six victories out of nine starts in the United Rugby Championship and one from two in the Challenge Cup, Edinburgh have the same win record to date as Glasgow.
Nonetheless, they are five points behind the Warriors in the league table, with just two bonus points to their name - one in a narrow defeat by Benetton and one in the four-try win over the Bulls. In the URC, they have been beaten by a double-figure margin only once - at Scotstoun - and not won at all by more than eight points.
In other words, they have been grinding out wins rather than achieving them in spectacular, free-scoring fashion. Yet while that may have made some of their games nervous viewing for their supporters, the fact remains that it is a preferable situation to the one which prevailed in the second half of last season, when they appeared to have become habituated to grinding out defeats.
Since taking over in the summer, new senior coach Sean Everitt has made them a more composed and pragmatic side. They are not yet firing on all cylinders, but that is no surprise given that some of their most potent attackers such as Darcy Graham, Duhan van der Merwe and Emiliano Boffelli have only recently returned to action following injuries at the Rugby World Cup. And in any case, who wants to be firing on all cylinders in early winter during a regular season which goes on until the beginning of June?
POOREST PERFORMANCE
The 22-24 home defeat by Benetton at the end of November saw the team revert to some of their old bad habits such as losing possession all too easily. The loss was all the more frustrating given they led by nine points at the end of a first half in which they might easily have racked up another couple of scores against opponents who at that stage of the game had little to offer.
BEST RESULT
Eight days after that loss to the Italians, Edinburgh travelled to Ulster and claimed a hard-fought but well-deserved 27-24 victory. It was a performance which typified the improvement wrought by Everitt, who has instilled in his players a self-belief that was often conspicuous by its absence last season.
KEY PLAYER
Former Munster Ben Healy has played every minute in the URC since joining in the close season, and has provided exactly the kind of calm, intelligent leadership that the team needed. His goal-kicking has come in pretty useful too for a side that struggled in that department in 2022-23.
ARRIVALS
In addition to Everitt and Healy, ex-Sale Sharks hooker Ewan Ashman has quickly proven himself to be a valuable signing. Although still only 23, he is already one of the leaders in the squad and has the hallmark of a future captain. Props Robin Hislop and Javan Sebastian have also been valuable additions to the front-row group.
Behind the scrum, the big news of the autumn was Ali Price’s arrival on a season-long loan from Glasgow. The sight of the Scotland No 9 in Edinburgh’s orange jersey may still be disconcertingly unfamiliar, but there is no doubt that he can be a major player for the rest of the season - and possibly beyond, given his Warriors contract expires in the summer.
DEPARTURES
As ever, a host of players left in the close season, among them the long-serving Stuart McInally and Nick Haining. But there was an unexpected loss late last year when Blair Kinghorn left for Toulouse, his contract having been bought out by the French club. At the time the Scotland back’s sudden departure may have seemed alarming, but with Healy ensconced at 10 and a strong pool of back-three players, the squad are far better placed to deal with his loss than they would have been a year or two ago.
The same goes for Bill Mata, who will leave for Bristol Bears in the summer on the expiry of his contract. The Fijian No 8 is undeniably a world-class talent, but at 32 he may have his best years behind him.
PROSPECTS
Edinburgh’s season is finely poised at present and could tip decisively in either direction over the coming months. In their Challenge Cup pool they are one of four teams on five points behind leaders Gloucester, who visit the Hive on Saturday 13. If they win, that may be enough to ensure the top-four place they need to qualify for the knockout stages.
Currently fifth in the URC, they remain well in contention for a top-eight finish. But it should be noted that tenth-placed Munster are only two points behind them, and there is every prospect of a frenzied dog fight for the play-off places. With just three of their remaining nine fixtures being at home, Edinburgh may well have to build substantially on the progress already made in order to avoid missing out on their principal goal for the season. Finding a way to pick up a few more bonus-point wins could be crucial.
