Edinburgh head coach Rob Moffat has confirmed his team for tomorrow’s opening Heineken Cup Pool 1 fixture against Cardiff Blues at the Cardiff City Stadium (kick-off 5.45pm, live on Sky Sports via red button).
Mike Blair, Chris Paterson and Ross Rennie, none of whom featured in last Saturday’s thrilling Magners League win over Aironi in Viadana, all return to the starting line-up, alongside Allan Jacobsen, who scored a crucial late try in that game.
Packing down in the second row in place of Esteban Lozada will be Fraser McKenzie, the Argentina international not having sufficiently recovered from a blow to the ribs sustained against Aironi. Fellow summer signing Netani Talei returns to the replacement bench, having not been part of a matchday 23 since sustaining a dead leg away to Ulster on 17 September.
Moffat believes his side are well placed to extend a fine recent record of three wins in four games in the Welsh capital. He said: “I’ve been really pleased with the players’ attitude and intensity in training this week. It’s clear everyone understands both what a massive game this is, and the importance of getting the campaign off to a positive start.
“It’s great to be able to welcome back guys with the experience that Mike, Chris and Ross will bring, and it’s also a good opportunity for Fraser to show what he can do at this level.
“By any measure, the team we’ll be sending out is a strong one and more than capable of winning what we know will be a really tough game
“Everyone in the camp is really looking forward to getting stuck in and working to secure the sort of result that will set us up well for the visit of Northampton next week.”
EDINBURGH TEAM FOR HEINEKEN CUP POOL 1 GAME AGAINST CARDIFF BLUES (SATURDAY 9 OCTOBER, CARDIFF CITY STADIUM, KICK-OFF 5.45PM, LIVE ON SKY SPORTS VIA RED BUTTON)
15 Chris Paterson
14 Jim Thompson
13 Ben Cairns
12 Alex Grove
11 Tim Visser
10 David Blair
9 Mike Blair
1 Allan Jacobsen
2 Ross Ford
3 Geoff Cross
4 Scott MacLeod
5 Fraser McKenzie
6 Alan MacDonald
8 Roddy Grant (captain)
7 Ross Rennie
REPLACEMENTS
16 Andrew Kelly
17 Kyle Traynor
18 David Young
19 Craig Hamilton
20 Netani Talei
21 Greig Laidlaw
22 James King
23 Mark Robertson
JOIN THE DEFENDERS OF THE CAPITAL FOR AN AFTERNOON OF HEAVENLY HEINEKEN CUP RUGBY WHEN THE SAINTS COME MARCHING IN. EDINBURGH vs NORTHAMPTON SAINTS, HEINEKEN CUP POOL 1, SATURDAY 16 OCTOBER 2010, MURRAYFIELD STADIUM, KICK-OFF 1.30PM. FOR TICKETS, CLICK HERE, CALL 0131 346 5180 OR VISIT THE MURRAYFIELD TICKET CENTRE IN PERSON.
