The weekends and order of opposition for Edinburgh's season 2010/11 Magners League campaign have been confirmed by Celtic Rugby. Like last year, the capital club's opening fixture is a trip to Cardiff Blues, on the weekend of 3/4/5 September, while the first Murrayfield date for fans to put in their diaries is the heavyweight clash with Munster the following weekend (10/11/12 September).
The visit from the Limerick side will represent the initial installment of a mini-series between Edinburgh and Irish provinces. On successive weekends, Rob Moffat's team will travel to Ulster (weekend of 17/18/19 September) and square up to Leinster at Murrayfield (weekend of 24/25/26 September). A first-ever meeting with Aironi, one of two Italian sides who have just joined the competition, will complete an exiciting first month of the new campaign.
After making the trek to Lombardy on the weekend of 1/2/3 October, Edinburgh will tackle a spectacular Heineken Cup double header. First up, once again, are Cardiff Blues (Saturday 9 October, Cardiff City stadium, 5.45pm), before Northampton Saints head north for what is sure to be one of the highlights of the entire Murrayfield season (Saturday 16 October, 1.30pm).
Edinburgh head coach Rob Moffat today welcomed the action-packed start to the season. He said: "We've got a number of tough games straight away in the Magners League and the Heineken Cup, but I see it as a real opportunity for us to set our stall out and show we mean business in both competitions. With another season under the players' belts, and a number of new additions that the coaches are really excited about, we're in a good position to make progress.
"I've been really impressed with the attitude and determination the guys have shown in the first part of pre-season, and I'm convinced we'll be exactly where we need to be when the first week of September comes round. As with the Heineken Cup, Cardiff will be a difficult place to go first up in the Magners League, but we showed there on the opening day of last season that there is nothing for us to fear."
In September 2009, Edinburgh won the first competitive match to be played at the Cardiff City stadium. Moffat's side got their Magners League campaign off to the best possible start by clinching a 22-21 success that came courtesy of tries from Alan MacDonald, Tim Visser and Chris Paterson. The former Gala player also landed two conversions and a penalty.
EDINBURGH IN THE MAGNERS LEAGUE SEASON 2010/11 (PRECISE DATES AND TIMES TO BE CONFIRMED AFTER DISCUSSIONS BETWEEN CELTIC RUGBY AND MAGNERS LEAGUE BROADCASTERS)
Weekend of 3/4/5 September 2010: Cardiff (A, Cardiff City stadium)
Weekend of 10/11/12 September 2010: Munster (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 17/18/19 September 2010: Ulster (A, Ravenhill)
Weekend of 24/25/26 September 2010: Leinster (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 1/2/3 Oct 2010: Aironi (A, Stadio Zaffanella)
Weekend of 22/23/24 Oct 2010: Ulster (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 29/30/31 Oct 2010: Leinster (A, RDS)
Weekend of 5/6/7 Nov 2010: Benetton Treviso (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 26/27/28 Nov 2010: Connacht (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 3/4/5 Dec 1010: Ospreys (A, Liberty stadium)
Weekend of 24/25/26/27 Dec 2010: Glasgow Warriors (A, Firhill stadium)
Weekend of 31 Dec 2010/1/2 Jan 2011: Glasgow Warriors (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 7/8/9 Jan 2011: Scarlets (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 11/12/13 Feb 2011: Newport Gwent Dragons (A, Rodney Parade)
Weekend of 18/19/20 Feb 2011: Munster (A, TBC)
Weekend of 25/26/27 Feb 2011: Scarlets (A, Parc y Scarlets)
Weekend of 4/5/6 Mar 2011: Cardiff Blues (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 25/26/27 Mar 2011: Ospreys (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 1/2/3 April 2011: Connacht (A, Sportsground)
Weekend of 15/16/17 April 2011: Aironi (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 22/23/24 April 2011: Newport Gwent Dragons (H, Murrayfield)
Weekend of 6/7/8 May 2011: Benetton Treviso (A, Stadio Monigo)
Weekend of 13/14/15 May 2011: Semi-finals
Weekend of 27/28/29 May 2011: Grand Final
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