Out with the old, in with the new at Edinburgh

First topic message reminder :

Former Wasps & QPR boss appointed MD

Davies seems to have a good CV with experience in rugby. Also has experience in "building" stadiums.

It'll be interesting to hear Wasps/QPR fans view of him.

Getting good 8s is really difficult because it's so specialist and the demands on the body are so great. You could do much worse than throw money at JB Jnr to put down the Vouvray and head back across the channel but I think he's enjoying himself too much to do that.

If Edinburgh knew they were losing Talei months ago, then it makes Richie Vernon's move to Glasgow look all the more strange as they already have Wilson and Strauss, with people like Harley slotting in at 6 to cover these positions.

I'm not sure that Dragons fans quite know what they potentially have in Talei because the reaction on their threads to the signing have been tepid, to say the least.

That's what I don't understand about letting Talei go - it is going to be bloody difficult finding a similar quality number 8.

Of course maybe it was his choice to leave, although the Dragons part still baffles me! They aren't even in the HK and have lost all their big players!

funnyExiledScot wrote:I doubt we'd have signed Basilia on a one-year deal so hopefully he'll be around for another season. We should use him more, he tackles like he means it.

The problem is he doesn't have a clue whats going on. He hasn't grasped English so does his own thing most of the time.

I think Basalaia is worth keeping with. He is very much a rough dimond (his high profile dropped ball against Munster) but he is completely mental in a good way and adds a real hard edge to the pack. A Basalaia - Rennie - Denton backrow has a real good balance.

Looks like cp10 has changed the title - so direct all abuse about how confused you are getting to him, not me!

Gala RFC prop Ewan McQuillin has been invited to train with the squad & provide front-row cover

cp10 wrote:

funnyExiledScot wrote:I doubt we'd have signed Basilia on a one-year deal so hopefully he'll be around for another season. We should use him more, he tackles like he means it.

The problem is he doesn't have a clue whats going on. He hasn't grasped English so does his own thing most of the time.

Which is still more powerful and committed than the majority of forwards in the Edinburgh squad. Thoses two games where he was played at 7, he was comfortably the best Edinburgh forward on the pitch. Now that Talei and Rennie and back in tandem, I really do think we ought to take another close look at Basilia. He's strong, fearless, carries well and tackles like a maniac. I'd plant him at 6 personally with the mandate to tackle anything that moves, and repeat until physically exhausted, then bring on Rambo to finish the stint.

He's definitely worth a closer look next season, if for no other reason than we're running short of professional back rowers.

I saw the Edinburgh headline and thought for a minute that Grahams had signed!

With all this Twitter chat I seem to have gained a couple of new followers, both of which are Scotland rugby fans - any takers??

majestic - pretty sure one of them is you (clever v2 name if it is btw), not sure about the other though!

The pope still hasn't got back to me about my query.

Presumably 'dogging' loses something in its translation to Spanish.

George Carlin wrote:The pope still hasn't got back to me about my query.

Presumably 'dogging' loses something in its translation to Spanish.

Not me RDW - no idea how to work the Twitter machine.

I think I've got Radge, Glove and Asbo already, but then again I've got a lap dancing club in Dublin following me too - no idea how that got there!

RDW_Scotland wrote:I think I've got Radge, Glove and Asbo already, but then again I've got a lap dancing club in Dublin following me too - no idea how that got there!

Oh aye, complete mystery!

RDW_Scotland wrote:I think I've got Radge, Glove and Asbo already, but then again I've got a lap dancing club in Dublin following me too - no idea how that got there!

Surely they'll stop if you just settle your tab?

To be fair I have no idea where they came from. I got in trouble too because they started following me a couple of weeks after I got back from a stag doo in Dublin – we genuinely didn’t go to a lap dancing club but the missus wasn’t happy!

RDW_Scotland wrote:That's what I don't understand about letting Talei go - it is going to be bloody difficult finding a similar quality number 8.

Of course maybe it was his choice to leave, although the Dragons part still baffles me! They aren't even in the HK and have lost all their big players!

It's simple: he's been enchanted by the fair city of Newport, its fine eateries and its charming women.

Edinburgh Rugby team to play Connacht
Murrayfield, Friday 12 April (KO 7.30pm)



15 Greig Tonks

14 Lee Jones

13 Matt Scott
12 Ben Atiga
11 Tim Visser

10 Piers Francis

Greig Laidlaw CAPTAIN



1 Allan Jacobsen

2 Ross Ford

3 Geoff Cross

4 Grant Gilchrist

5 Sean Cox

6 Stuart McInally

7 Hamish Watson

8 Netani Talei



Substitutes
:
16 Steve Lawrie

17 Robin Hislop
18 John Yapp

19 Perry Parker
20 Robert McAlpine
21 Sean Kennedy

22 Harry Leonard

23 Tom Brown

Players unavailable: Alex Allan (ankle), Ben Cairns (knee), Nick De Luca (suspended), David Denton (knee), Jamie Farndale (leg), Roddy Grant (wrist), Sam Hidalgo-Clyne (ankle), James King (groin), Chris Leck (shoulder), Willem Nel (family bereavement) Lewis Niven (bicep), Steven Turnbull (knee), Sep Visser (international duty), Alun Walker (hamstring), Izak van der Westhuizen (ankle).

Rennie injured again, was that 2 weeks he lasted?

Shoulder injury again - no word on how serious it is.

Worrying that we have no backrow subs on the bench and Talei is starting - proof if it was ever needed that we need to at least replace Talei next year!

A few odd things about the team above.

- Ross Rennie not listed as unavailable and yet not in the squad.

- No sign of Basilia, with MacAlpine preferred as back row cover.

- Disappointing to see Ben Cairns yet again injured after such a short come back period.

- Sad to hear about Willem Nel's family bereavement.

I still think this side should win, but the backrow options really are looking weak, an area in which Connacht will fight hard.

Rennie is mentioned in the main text of the article as having "sustained a shoulder against Zebre", his absence from the injury list must be an oversight.

He and Ben Cairns have been so unlucky over the years!

On the plus side three good young options on the bench for Edinburgh, certainly the chance to add some tempo late in the game, and the last few weeks has provided Hamish Watson with an excellent platform from which to develop.

Francis has also played well in the last couple of games, and there have been signs that Ben Atiga is finally reaching an acceptable level of fitness.

There'll be no bonus point here, but another win would represent a very creditable start for the interim coaching team.

Pat_Mustard wrote:Rennie is mentioned in the main text of the article as having "sustained a shoulder against Zebre", his absence from the injury list must be an oversight.

He and Ben Cairns have been so unlucky over the years!

Yeh, just noticed that upon reading the article in full. Frankly it ends any possibility of Rennie making the Lions, and I fear for Cairns' chances of having his contract extended. These guys needed to be back in at the end of the season and performing to their full capabilities. Real shame.

Most upset about Cairns actually. He just cannot seem to catch a break.

George Carlin wrote:Most upset about Cairns actually. He just cannot seem to catch a break.

I wonder if it might not be a good idea to reintroduce him via the 7's set-up next time. Let him join the 7's tour for 6 months and just get himself running freely and working on his contact skills in that environment. I don't think it would do him any harm, and Edinburgh have cover at centre.

I guess it's the same knee as before, can't find any details through Google. Hope it's not serious, but doesn't sound good. Is his contract up at the end of this season?

Aye his contract is up. Bradley made strong hints that it wouldn't be renewed, but there might be a new career in coaching for him...

Well hopefully Bradley's opinion counts for nothing these days. The man was incompetent.

I think a 7's contract for a year would be the way forward. He's a talented player, he just needs to get playing again. 7's would be a better environment to test the strength of his knee and build up to match fitness.

I guess the will be a role for Ben Atiga next season afterall.

7's worked for Jedi at Glasgow. Gave him a chance to get his knee back to proper order again and he's gone from strength to strength since!

Edinburgh Facebook page says they aren’t sure of the extent of Rennie’s injury yet, which suggests it is a bad one again.

funnyExiledScot wrote:Well hopefully Bradley's opinion counts for nothing these days. The man was incompetent.

I think a 7's contract for a year would be the way forward. He's a talented player, he just needs to get playing again. 7's would be a better environment to test the strength of his knee and build up to match fitness.

I guess the will be a role for Ben Atiga next season afterall.

Yes, the rest of the players can really hike up their cardio by doing laps of him.

Or laps with him on their backs. That would be impressive....

The Cairns injury has put a downer on my day. Not looking good for him, though you would think that with the amount of time he was given to return after the first injury, that if theres any hope for a full recovery they'll give him the time. When you compare the support hes got to the likes of A Blair, F Brown, Callam etc, they dont sound like they want to ditch him.

Blair is training with the 7s team just now – will be interesting to see how he gets on.

That's pleasing to hear re: Alex Blair. I still have high hopes that he'll get another pro-contract as long as he can prove his fitness.

This is exactly what the 7's is for in my view, a safety net for highly promising players who for one reason or another, be it late development or returning from injury, need a platform on which to relaunch.

Alex Blair was supposed to be a good footballer with pace, so 7's should be a great arena for him to work on his basics, whilst getting up to full fitness. It's not like Piers Francis is blowing the competition aside....

His Timness had better start scoring a few or some young tyke called George North may overtake his aggregate tally this season (GN has 9, TV has 11). And that would never do. Not to worry though - we'll make sure young George doesn't touch the ball this weekend.

Visser’s strike rate has fallen off dramatically since around December time. Even in the 6N he looked like he was short on confidence (Wales try aside).

Visser's strike rate dropped the moment NDL got injured. The fact is they have an excellent understanding and form a very handy combination.

Bit worrying if he is so heavily reliant on one player though…

RDW_Scotland wrote:Bit worrying if he is so heavily reliant on one player though…

He used to manage just fine with Cairns when he was the incumbent 13. I think its more that our midfield is a bit of a shambles at the moment rather than the loss of De Luca.

Regarding Alex Blair, 7's is definately the way to get him back. So much of what Accies did at the weekend came through him and/or Glashan. Even if he never gets back into pro level at 15's, he'll be a good asset to the 7's team.

I just hope they dont rush him back, although they seem to have learned how to integrate talented players with Bennett. I still cant believe Blair played for Scotland A before he played for Edinburgh! If Bennett is the messiah, then Blair is Moses.

Who is this Glashan fellow? Is that the same Alex Glashan, youngscrum-half? I’ve heard very good things about this guy, though haven’t seen him play any age group rugby for Scotland.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Edinburgh need to sign Heathcote! I honeslty think that Heathcote would do the business and help to turn Edinburgh back into a decent side! Lest we forget that cairns should hopefully be back to his old self next season we could see Scott/Carins forming a decent centre pairing. I agree that Edinburgh could do with a big bal carrying backrow player. I also agree that Ally Hoog could be the man to do this. Covers 6 and 8. Put McInally at 6. Denton at 8, Rennie at 7 with Hogg mixing it up at 6 and 8. I dont get why folk say McINally is not "tall" enough to be a 6. Height has hee haw to do with things in modern rugby!

Imperialbigdave wrote:

RDW_Scotland wrote:Bit worrying if he is so heavily reliant on one player though…

He used to manage just fine with Cairns when he was the incumbent 13. I think its more that our midfield is a bit of a shambles at the moment rather than the loss of De Luca.

It does seem hard to get any credit for poor De Luca these days! The reason the midfield is a shambles is because De Luca isn't there, forcing Scott out of position at 13 and fat boy at 12.

Scott at 12 and De Luca at 13 is our optimal combination, with Cairns on the bench. Visser will score tries when given decent ball. If anything his allround performance has improved in the last few months. He has certainly missed less tackles and caught more balls in defence, the difference being that Edinburgh haven't played good attacking rugby, and he hasn't had a 13 of De Luca's quality putting him into space. It's not as if Visser has been botching chances, he just hasn't had any.

funnyExiledScot wrote:

Imperialbigdave wrote:

RDW_Scotland wrote:Bit worrying if he is so heavily reliant on one player though…

He used to manage just fine with Cairns when he was the incumbent 13. I think its more that our midfield is a bit of a shambles at the moment rather than the loss of De Luca.

It does seem hard to get any credit for poor De Luca these days! The reason the midfield is a shambles is because De Luca isn't there, forcing Scott out of position at 13 and fat boy at 12.

Scott at 12 and De Luca at 13 is our optimal combination, with Cairns on the bench. Visser will score tries when given decent ball. If anything his allround performance has improved in the last few months. He has certainly missed less tackles and caught more balls in defence, the difference being that Edinburgh haven't played good attacking rugby, and he hasn't had a 13 of De Luca's quality putting him into space. It's not as if Visser has been botching chances, he just hasn't had any.

Sorry, I didnt make myself clear, the midfield is a shambles because De Luca is out yes, but what im trying to say is that we could get visser back to top form without him. The midfield could be fixed without De Luca.

In other words; Vissers dropped form because the midfield is a shambles because De Luca's out, but thats not the same as Vissers forms dropped because De Lucas out. As with any decent winger, Visser will perform with any midfield that is working, not just one that has De Luca in it. He performed when it was Houston and Cairns and when it was King and Cairns because they were decent midfields.

I was just trying to argue that Vissers not reliant on De Luca, but rather on a good 12/13 axis. At the moment De Lucas abscence is depriving us of a good 12/13 combo.

tigertattie wrote:I've said it before and I'll say it again. Edinburgh need to sign Heathcote! I honeslty think that Heathcote would do the business and help to turn Edinburgh back into a decent side! Lest we forget that cairns should hopefully be back to his old self next season we could see Scott/Carins forming a decent centre pairing. I agree that Edinburgh could do with a big bal carrying backrow player. I also agree that Ally Hoog could be the man to do this. Covers 6 and 8. Put McInally at 6. Denton at 8, Rennie at 7 with Hogg mixing it up at 6 and 8. I dont get why folk say McINally is not "tall" enough to be a 6. Height has hee haw to do with things in modern rugby!

We dont need another youngster at stand off. We need an experienced one to mentor the young stand offs we already have. Who has Leonard had to learn from at edinburgh in his time so far? No-one. Its no wonder hes struggling to take the 10 jersey between that and a series of coaches who would rather play a guy who rewards their faith by missing all his kicks at goal.

We've done this before with Heathcote, and I think the consensus is that if he's getting regular starts at Bath, he should stay there. If not then he should come to Edinburgh.

The mentoring thing I care less about. I'm sure Hodge can impart a few words of wisdom into the young Leonard. What I care about is ability. Right now we have Francis, Leonard and Hunter. Personally, despite recent good performances from Francis, I think there's little to separate between them, with Leonard in my view being the player with the most long term potential.

I think we'll have those three for next season, after which hopefully we can promote Leonard to start, and replace Francis with Heathcote, or move Alex Blair up from the 7's to understudy Leonard alongside Hunter.

I suppose the other option is to bring in a wise old head, perhaps Gordon Ross, on a short term deal to "mentor". Personally I don't think that'll add anything. I'm quite sure Leonard is good enough, he just needs more game time.

RDW_Scotland wrote:With all this Twitter chat I seem to have gained a couple of new followers, both of which are Scotland rugby fans - any takers??

majestic - pretty sure one of them is you (clever v2 name if it is btw), not sure about the other though!

Yep that is indeed myself!

[quote="Majestic83"]

RDW_Scotland wrote:With all this Twitter chat I seem to have gained a couple of new followers, both of which are Scotland rugby fans - any takers??

majestic - pretty sure one of them is you (clever v2 name if it is btw), not sure about the other though!

I don't know why you follow me with some of the rubbish I have posted on twitter though....

Ah the culprits have revealed themselves!

To be fair I follow 300 people so the chances of me actually seeing any of your tweets are slim..