A lot has changed since Edinburgh beat Saracens in the Challenge Cup almost exactly a year ago, and to an extent the two teams have followed divergent paths.
The English club, only just returned to the Premiership last season, have since firmly re-established themselves as one of the top flight’s leading lights, and are comfortably, top of the table.
Edinburgh, by contrast, have just suffered their worst loss of the season – last Friday’s 38-17 home defeat by Munster in which they failed to score in the second half.
But there are similarities too, not least the fact that both teams have qualified for the Champions Cup this season, leaving the second-tier Challenge Cup behind them.
And, as they prepare to meet again on Sunday in European rugby’s main tournament, Edinburgh prop Pierre Schoeman will use the memory of last year’s 21-18 victory at the StoneX Stadium as a reminder of how good his team can be. The loosehead prop was one of the key figures for Mike Blair’s side at the north London venue on 11 December 2021, going toe to toe with the mighty Saracens pack and more than holding his own. On the other side of the front row, WP Nel also put in a titanic shift, and topped a man-of-the-match display by scoring what turned out to be the winning try.
“It’s a very important memory for us, although it was a while ago and they have won nine out of nine on the bounce,” Schoeman recalled this week. “It’s going to be a massive game and we have to be on it, especially after last week. We’re going to have to prep well for Sunday.
“The key to winning last year was to do the basics well, especially in the big pressure moments. We need to have a good line-out, a good set-piece. We have to stay in every moment and keep the focus for 80 minutes.
“As a pack you have to dominate set-piece-wise – that’s the only way to go. Match them and go for them in the scrums and mauls.
“We know what we are capable of. For us it’s about having the confidence and consistency for 80 minutes.”
Edinburgh certainly showed both of those qualities in that match 12 months ago, and the result took Blair’s record in his first season as head coach to an impressive six wins and a draw from the opening eight games of the campaign.
Equally impressively, although he had already managed to get Edinburgh playing a far more open and attacking game than had been the case under his predecessor Richard Cockerill, the new boss also showed he had taught his team to adapt intelligently to circumstances.
With the rain getting heavier as the match went on, the visitors had to play a tighter, tougher game, impressing their coach with their grit and commitment.
“When I spoke to the guys after the game, what I talked about was the heart and the attitude and the commitment to playing for the jersey,” Blair explained that afternoon, the noise of his squad’s celebrations still very audible in the dressing rooms behind him.
“That’s something that we’re really trying to instil at the club – about that pride in the history of the jersey and what it means to play for Edinburgh.
“That’s what got us through the game – that attitude. It wasn’t other things, it was putting your body on the line and giving everything for the jersey.”
In that regard, the curious thing about last week’s second-half collapse was the increasing demoralisation of the home side. They all too visibly ran out of ideas after beginning the match full of attacking vigour.
“It was frustrating, because we know what we are capable of,” added Schoeman, who had been subbed off at half time. “For us it’s about having the confidence and consistency for 80 minutes. That way, we’ll get the wins.
“The lack of focus possibly in the second half let us down. It was a momentum shift of two penalties and a knock-on and a kick that’s not gone right. You just have to stay in the moment, rectify it and win the moment.”
