Rob Moffat today challenged his players to make a final pitch for selection ahead of Friday’s Magners League clash with Ulster at Ravenhill (kick-off 8.05pm, live on BBC ALBA).
The Edinburgh head coach has named a squad of 25 for the match, giving all those in the running an opportunity to earn involvement in the fixture by impressing him at training this week.
Twenty-one of the 23 players who formed the match squad for the game against Munster last Friday are included in this week’s provisional party, with Ross Rennie and Esteban Lozada dropping out. The Argentine lock, who suffered a blow to the head in that encounter, has subsequently resumed light training.
Returning to the squad for the Ulster fixture are captain Roddy Grant, who missed the Munster game due to injury, wing Lee Jones, and second-row Craig Hamilton. Dave Denton, the back-five forward who was a standout with the Scotland under-20 side in recent times, has also been given the chance to stake a claim.
Moffat, who saw his team impress in attack against Cardiff Blues and then in defence against Munster, wants Edinburgh to marry these elements in Belfast. He said: “So far in the Magners League, we’ve only shown a fraction of what we know we can produce. Parts of our game, in isolation, have been very good, but it’s now about making sure we bring them all out at the same time.
“We’ve decided to give the players another couple of days to show why they merit selection, and we’re expecting training to be pretty intense as a result. That sort of competition for places is exactly what we want, because it helps to drive up standards.
“We said all throughout pre-season that we’ve got an open mind as regards selection, and that remains very much the case. You only have to look at someone like Lee Jones, who has really forced his way in, to see what happens when people put their hand up.
“Dave [Denton] has looked really sharp ever since he joined us in the summer, and he’ll be pushing the other back row guys hard all year. It’s great to see the younger lads not being overawed by the professional environment and bringing something fresh to the mix.”
Edinburgh have won on two of their last three visits to Ravenhill. Precisely 12 months ago, a Tim Visser try, a Phil Godman drop goal and eight points from the boot of Chris Paterson saw Moffat’s men claim a 16-13 success. The head coach recalled: “We showed a lot of guts to win that game, and we know that’s what will be required again on Friday.
“Our record over there shows that we’re more than capable of rising to the challenge, and that’s the message I’ll keep getting across to the players as we build up for the game.”
EDINBURGH SQUAD FOR MAGNERS LEAGUE MATCH AGAINST ULSTER AT RAVENHILL ON FRIDAY 17 SEPTEMBER, KICK-OFF 8.05PM
BACKS: Chris Paterson, Mark Robertson, Tim Visser, Lee Jones, Ben Cairns, Alex Grove, John Houston, Phil Godman, David Blair, Mike Blair, Greig Laidlaw
FORWARDS: Allan Jacobsen, Kyle Traynor, Ross Ford, Andrew Kelly, Geoff Cross, Jack Gilding, Fraser McKenzie, Scott MacLeod, Craig Hamilton, Scott Newlands, Dave Denton, Roddy Grant, Netani Talei, Stuart McInally
