Head coach Rob Moffat welcomes back Scotland lock Jim Hamilton into Edinburgh’s starting line-up – one of four changes to the side that lost at Firhill – for the Greaves Sports 1872 Cup decider at Murrayfield on Saturday (2 January, kick off 3.05pm, live on STV) and expects a spirited response from his players.
Hamilton, 27, has missed the opening four months of the season after suffering from patella tendonitis.
But the former Leicester forward has been given the all-clear to resume first team duties – much to the delight of Moffat.
Moffat said: “Jim (Hamilton) has come back in after being out with a long term injury. It is good to have him back and, like it has been with Ross Rennie and David Callam, his return gives the squad a massive boost.”
Following the 25-12 defeat at Firhill, Moffat has reintroduced prop Kyle Traynor into the front row, Alan MacDonald reclaims the number six jersey after recovering from a rib injury while wing Mark Robertson returns with John Houston moving across to inside centre.
As a result, Moffat is expecting a positive response from his team heading into the deciding match where both the Greaves Sports 1872 Cup and Magners League points are at stake.
He added: “There should be a reaction to Sunday’s result from our players – we didn’t play well and we lost to our closest rivals.
“Glasgow went top of the league while we dropped down to fifth place. So this is a massively important game for us; not just because it is Glasgow, but because it is a big game in the wider scheme of the Magners League.
“There was a good crowd at Firhill last week and it would be great to see another record-breaking crowd at Murrayfield on Saturday.”
Robertson returned to the starting line-up for the first time since early December and it was a double celebration for the powerful wing because he also turned 25 today (Wednesday).
Moffat explained the reasoning behind his elevation into the starting line-up and says the Scotland ‘A’ back has impressed over recent weeks.
He said: “Mark has looked sharp coming off the bench over the past couple of games – he has put his hand up for selection.
“We thought we would freshen things up a bit and we are hoping the team will perform a lot better than we did last week. We need to get the basics right in order to get our game going.”
Mike Blair is still ruled out with an ankle injury, but Edinburgh’s first team captain is edging ever closer to a return.
Vice captain Allister Hogg is expected to be out for a few months after undergoing surgery to repair a hip problem at Spire Murrayfield Hospital last week.
Stand-off David Blair (ankle) continues to be ruled out while club captain Simon Cross is still out with a knee injury along with Andrew Easson (knee), Ryan Grant (ankle) and Simon Webster (hamstring).
Edinburgh Rugby Club team to play Glasgow Warriors in the Magners League at Murrayfield (Saturday 2 January, kick-off 3.05pm, live on STV)
15 Chris Paterson (captain)
14 Mark Robertson
13 Ben Cairns
12 John Houston
11 Tim Visser
10 Phil Godman
9 Greig Laidlaw
1 Kyle Traynor
2 Ross Ford
3 Geoff Cross
4 Scott MacLeod
5 Jim Hamilton
6 Alan MacDonald
7 Roddy Grant
8 Scott Newlands
Substitutes: Sean Crombie/Andrew Kelly, Allan Jacobsen, Craig Hamilton, David Callam, Ross Samson, Nick De Luca, Jim Thompson.
Edinburgh’s average home crowd for the 2009/2010 season is 4,546.
The average age of Edinburgh’s 36-man squad is just 25.
Chris Paterson has scored 89 Magners League points for Edinburgh so far this season (an average of 12.7 points per game).
There are currently 17 Scotland internationalists in the Edinburgh squad plus 13 Scotland ‘A’ internationalists.
There is only one non-Scottish qualified player, Tim Visser in the Edinburgh squad
Last season Edinburgh recorded their highest ever finish in the Magners League (second) and won their final six matches – an all-time team record.
Last season, Edinburgh attracted a crowd of over 12,500 for last season’s 1872 Cup match against Glasgow.
Greaves Sports 1872 Cup ticket details
Tickets for both Greaves Sports 1872 Cup derby matches cost £15 for adults, £10 for concessions (students and senior citizens) and £5 for juniors (under-18s). Tickets can be bought in advance via the hotline on 0844 800 3490 (for the Glasgow leg) or on 0131 346 5180 (for the Edinburgh leg); or in person from the Scottish Rugby Ticket Centre (situated off Roseburn Street, open Monday-Wednesday, 9am-5pm, Thursday 9-4pm, closed on Friday).
