Edinburgh Rugby captain Greig Laidlaw today called on the east of Scotland to back the club’s 2011/12 RaboDirect PRO12 and Heineken Cup campaign, which kicks of in earnest against Cardiff Blues this Friday (2 September, kick-off 7.30pm).
The boys in black and red are in good shape, having won back-to-back pre-season matches over Sale Sharks (28-22) at their Stockport home, Edgeley Park, and over Alan Tait’s Newcastle Falcons at Murrayfield last Friday (20-17).
However, while the results bode well for the side’s preparations, Laidlaw, who on Friday scored all but five of his side’s points on the way to being named man of the match, is adamant that they’ll count for nothing when the PRO12 kicks off on Friday night.
“Two wins from two is always good but we have to reiterate that these were only pre-season games,” said Laidlaw.
“To move forward we have to win our first league game against Cardiff – that’s the big one.
“Cardiff will bring a high level of physicality in the tackle and breakdown and have some good ball players who will challenge us with their attack.
“To combat that we’ll need to be aggressive when we carry the ball and will need to work together in our defensive systems.”
The Newcastle match was the home support’s first chance to sample the new stadium set-up which relocated supporter seating to the much-closer east stand, while a perimeter standing area was created around the other three sides of the pitch, to get supporters right on top of the action.
Laidlaw added: “The crowd were fantastic on Friday, the boys really like the new set-up and the supporters seemed to enjoy it as well so hopefully that’s something we can build on in the weeks to come, starting this Friday.”
Laidlaw was today named in a 25-man squad by head coach Michael Bradley in a back division that could feature fellow Borderers Gregor Hunter, Lee Jones and John Houston.
Edinburgh squad for match v Cardiff:
Forwards from: A N Other, Sean Cox, David Denton, Grant Gilchrist, Jack Gilding, Andy Kelly, Steve Lawrie, Esteban Lozada, Alan Macdonald, Lewis Niven, Roddy Grant, Steven Turnbull, Kyle Traynor, Hamish Watson
Backs from: Tom Brown, Phil Godman, Gregor Hunter, John Houston, Lee Jones, Greig Laidlaw CAPTAIN, Chris Leck, Matt Scott, Jim Thompson, Tim Visser, Simon Webster
SIGN UP FOR NEW PERSPECTIVES IN SEASON 2011/12! All of Edinburgh Rugby’s regular RaboDirect PRO12 matches and Heineken Cup home games are included in our 2011/12 season ticket package. Other benefits include access to the reserved seating sections to guarantee you a premium view of the match while you’ll also be able to sign two friends into the pre and post-match supporters’ lounge at Murrayfield Wanderers.
Season tickets are priced at £35 for under-18s, £90 for students/senior citizens and £180 for adults. For more information visit www.edinburghrugby.org, call 0131 346 5180 or visit the Murrayfield Ticket Centre (just off Roseburn Street) in person.
