Edinburgh Rugby moved up to sixth position on the RaboDirect PRO12 table with their hard fought victory over Leinster (11/6) at a cold, wet and windy Murrayfield on Friday night. This after they have spent much of the PRO12 season languishing near the bottom half of the table. This win followed a good one they achieved the weekend before in their Heineken Cup pool game against Gloucester.
The victory for the team also proved to be a personal victory for former Southern Kings loose forward Cornell du Preez who walked away with the man of the match award as reported live here in the comments on rugby-talk. He had a commanding game and thrived in the wet conditions driving the ball up strongly and tackling like a Trojan and it seemed like he has a good feel for where the game is going as time and time again he popped up close to where the action was.
The game took place under the watchful eye of Edinburgh head coach Alan Solomons. When the former Southern Kings coach Solomons took over as head coach of Edinburgh not long before the start of the season he had a big rebuilding job to do after a very poor season last time round from Edinburgh. From the outset he made it clear publicly that he thought it would be a long work in progress and was only looking to the kind of performance that his team would produce rather than revealing any clear goals set with regards to where he wanted them to end in the PRO12 and Heineken Cup. He stayed true to this sentiment in an interview aired just before Friday’s game where he was asked a very direct question about whether he thought Edinburgh could win their game against Leinster and his answer was that he thought they would put up a good performance.
Edinburgh scored the only try in the game and dominated the forward battle, while their backs kicked cleverly and were generally really solid under high kicks from Leinster.
Another really impressive part Edinburgh’s game was their defence which at one point deep in the second half had them well into the nineties percent tackle success rate. Rewind back to their first game of the season against Leinster’s compatriots Munster, Edinburgh’s defence was diabolical and they conceded five tries in a 34/23 away defeat. They were only saved by a bigger defeat earning by a host of penalties and a late Lee Jones try. It seems they have steadily been making progress in adjusting to defence structures implemented by yet another former Kings man, defence coach Omar Mouneimne.
We have a look at the satisfaction gained from the game by Cornell du Preez and Alan Solomons as reported by RaboDirect PRO12 and BBC Scotland respectively.
Cornell du Preez
Man of the match Cornell Du Preez believes victory against reigning RaboDirect PRO12 champions Leinster represents a huge landmark for Edinburgh Rugby.
The South African flanker led Edinburgh to their fifth win in seven in all competitions, as they edged past the Irish region 11-6 at Murrayfield. Dougie Fife scored the game’s only try, in the first half, and it proved to be the difference as Greig Laidlaw and Ian Madigan each kicked two penalties for their respective sides.
The win moved Edinburgh into the top half of the RaboDirect PRO12 and Du Preez, who followed head coach Alan Solomons to Scotland this summer, insists they can maintain this form.
“It’s very good for us to beat them as it just shows how much we’ve come on as a team recently,” he said. “Winning is a habit, so long as we keep improving.
“It’s been really easy for me to settle in – the guys have been great, but I knew all the systems before I arrived so that was a big help to me.
“But it’s not about me. We’ve got a good squad of guys all pushing each other for places, so it’s great to be in the team. I just try to do my best every week.”
Edinburgh’s next challenge is back-to-back clashes with Glasgow Warriors, on Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
The Warriors began the season as one of the RaboDirect PRO12’s form teams but Du Preez believes Edinburgh’s recent run puts them in a good position.
“I think they’ll be really tough games,” he added. It’s going to be tough but if we win the battle up front it could decide who wins the game.”
Alan Solomons
Edinburgh coach Alan Solomons praised his side following their victory over Pro12 champions Leinster.
Dougie Fife scored the only try of the match as Edinburgh ran out 11-6 winners, with Greig Laidlaw’s two penalties also proving crucial.
“The side played with tremendous heart, commitment and composure,” Solomons told BBC Scotland.
“There were times when we were on our line near the end and we held our nerve and defended outstandingly.”
Scotland trio Laidlaw, David Denton and Nick De Luca returned after missing the Heineken Cup win at Gloucester.
And the skipper impressed at scrum-half, along with stand-in fly-half Greig Tonks, in wretched conditions.
Ian Madigan kicked the visitors ahead, but Laidlaw’s solo break took Edinburgh to within the 22 and the hosts kept possession for Tonks to find wing Fife sliding in on the left.
Laidlaw kicked a penalty before the interval, while he and Madigan traded three-pointers in the second half.
Leinster managed one last push in search of a try, but Edinburgh held on under their own posts to take a significant scalp.
Solomons hailed his side for a “good all-round performance” at Murrayfield.
“We have a fantastic defensive coach in Omar Mouneimne and the guys have now adapted to his systems and one can see the evidence of that,” he added.
“I’m sure they’ll continue to improve.”