Flying Fijian, Netani Talei, today dedicated his Hotel Du Vin/Malmaison player of the month award to the club’s record-breaking support, in a month which saw Edinburgh Rugby make history by booking a home Heineken Cup quarter-final.
The barnstorming number 8’s performances helped secure the club’s place in the last eight, setting up arguably the biggest club rugby match to take place on Scottish soil with four-time champions Toulouse on Easter Weekend at Murrayfield Stadium (Saturday 7 April, kick-off 3pm).
With a Scottish competition record crowd turning out for Edinburgh’s decisive 34-11 win over London Irish (in which he scored the third of four Edinburgh tries), Talei urged fans to snap up the half-price tickets before the offer ends two weeks tomorrow (Wednesday 29 February).
The month’s two-time try-scorer and man-of-the-match winner said: “It means a lot win this award, especially in a month where our performances as individuals and as a team were so important and so many players could have rightly won this award.
“January was a fantastic time for everyone involved in the club and there’s no doubt the fans made the difference.
“We had a great travelling support in Paris for our match against Racing Metro and then to top the group in front of 11,000 people, a Scottish record for the competition, was an incredible experience.”
Looking ahead to the quarter-final, Talei believed Edinburgh Rugby were set to break the country’s all-time club rugby record, which the side set against Ulster in the Celtic Cup final in 2003 (17,174).
“This is a game not only for Edinburgh or just rugby fans, this is a huge game for all of Scotland to get behind and be part of this great occasion.
“Toulouse are a massive club packed with French internationalists and some of the top players from around the world but together, with the backing of a massive Murrayfield crowd, we’ll meet that challenge head on.”
The club's half-price ticket offer for the Heineken Cup quarter-final v Toulouse ends on Wednesday 29 February: until then fans can buy tickets for just £15 (adults), £10 (OAP) and £5 (students and U18s).
After the deadline adult prices will go up to £25 until the day before the match when they will rise one final time to £30. OAP tickets prices will increase to £12.50 and £15 respectively. Student tickets will go up to £10 while U18 prices will remain at £5 throughout.
All seating is reserved so supporters can log on now and pick their place in history using the new interactive stadium plan!
