Preview: Cardiff Blues v Edinburgh

by

in

Cardiff Blues host Edinburgh in the first home game of the Guinness PRO14 campaign.

Both teams sealed maximum points in the opening round of action, with Wales’ Capital Region running in five tries against Isuzu Southern Kings in a tough away trip to Port Elizabeth.

Meanwhile, Richard Cockerill’s Edinburgh side got their season underway with a comfortable win over Zebre at BT Murrayfield.

Cardiff Blues: Matthew Morgan; Owen Lane, Garyn Smith, Willis Halaholo, Aled Summerhill; Jarrod Evans, Lloyd Williams; Brad Thyer, Liam Belcher, Dmitri Arhip, Seb Davies, Rory Thornton, Josh Turnbull, Olly Robinson, Nick Williams (capt)

Replacements: Kristian Dacey, Corey Domachowski, Scott Andrews, Shane Lewis-Hughes, Will Boyde, Lewis Jones, Jason Tovey, Harri Millard

Edinburgh Rugby: Damien Hoyland; Jamie Farndale, Mark Bennett, Matt Scott, Duhan van der Merwe; Jaco van der Walt, Nic Groom; Pierre Schoeman, Michael Willemse, Pietro Ceccarelli, Fraser McKenzie, Murray Douglas, Lewis Carmichael, Luke Crosbie, Nick Haining

Replacements: Cameron Fenton, Jamie Bhatti, Murray McCallum, Mesulame Kunavula, Ally Miller, Charlie Shiel, Simon Hickey, George Taylor

Last Time Out: Edinburgh 17 Cardiff Blues 19

As Wales secured a famous victory over England in Cardiff, with Josh Adams crossing the whitewash on a memorable night for Warren Gatland, Cardiff Blues were up in the Scottish capital, ready to take on high-flying Edinburgh.

The hosts flew out of the starting blocks, with tries from Nathan Fowles and Viliame Mata giving Richard Cockerill’s side a 14-point lead at half time.

The boot of Jaco van der Walt edged them further ahead in the opening stages of the second half, making it 17 unanswered points for the Scottish outfit.

However, the visitors showed their spirit to fight back into the game, with replacement, and former Edinburgh wing, Jason Harries playing a blinder off the bench at BT Murrayfield.

A Harries break set up Lloyd Williams for his side’s opening try of the evening, before the Wales Sevens international added a brace of his own to cap off a memorable night at Auld Reekie.

Head-To-Head: Owen Lane v Duhan van der Merwe

Both Lane and van der Merwe were stand-out stars in the Guinness PRO14 last season, providing true try-scoring pedigrees for their sides.

Cardiff Blues’ Lane was nominated for the Energia Next-Gen Star of the Season, which was eventually won by Glasgow Warriors’ Adam Hastings, while the duo crossed for a combined 17 tries in the PRO14.

They both possess a deadly combination of pace and power and are sure to set the Championship alight once again this campaign.

Latest news