Home Quarter Final Is Vital

Todd Blackadder and his Edinburgh Rugby team-mates have booked their Celtic League quarter-final place – but Neath can still put a spanner in the Scottish works and force them to travel on the last weekend of November.

The Welsh All Blacks are on the brink of qualifying for the last eight. A win puts them through comfortably, although a bonus point in defeat could be enough, and they could also make it on the back of a Llanelli defeat.

Going into the final straight of the Pool stages, Pool A is awash with ifs and maybes.
“When we looked at our Pool in the Celtic League in the summer we said that this final, stand-alone fixture against Neath would be key to our chances of qualifying for a home quarter-final,” said Edinburgh’s director of rugby Iain Rankin.

“We have qualified for the knock-out phase, but there are still five teams in the hunt for the four places. That means it is going to be a highly competitive last weekend. This is a big game for us. Neath, Llanelli and Ulster are all fighting for the final spots and that means we will be facing a highly motivated side at Meadowbank.

“It may be a bit of a cliche, but the biggest game we play is always the next one on the fixture list. We were disappointed to lose against London Irish in the Heineken Cup on Sunday, although we were competitive.”
“We were very keen to make a bit of a statement against English opposition, especially after Glasgow’s win over Sale Sharks. We didn’t get the result we wanted at the Madejski Stadium, but I think people are finally sitting up and taking some notice of the Celtic League teams.
“The players are fit and fresh and there is a good team spirit. The key to success in this tournament is having a home game in the quarter-finals and we are targeting that.”