Sporting encounters are often described as a game of two halves, but this is normally after the full-time whistle, not when the teams are announced. Both Edinburgh and Gloucester put out team sheets containing 30 players – one team for the first half and one for the second.
There had been grumbles in the fan forums about Edinburgh only playing one preseason match. It turns out they laid on two: both against the same opposition and on the same night - so you only needed to buy one ticket. The catch was that they were only 40 minutes each.
The two halves played out like different matches. The first was a showcase of individual flair and skill. A number of new signings and returning players were open to scrutiny and it didn’t take long for Mosese Tuipolotu to vanquish any speculation that he was in Scotland purely because of his surname.
Receiving the ball in the Gloucester 22. Mosese turned on the after-burners and ran an excellent line to stretch the defence. A diving offload, out the back door found Goosen who flicked it on to Darcy. It had been 8 months since he had last played having been injured for most of last season, but Darcy showed no signs of having been away as he danced and dived to a try in the corner.
His excitement to be back on the pitch was obvious. Every involvement had energy and enthusiasm that earned him a well-deserved Player of the Match.
Tuipolotu was not only impressive in attack. Defensively, he showcased the art of the dominant tackle, including driving an attacker 15 metres into touch. Physicality in defence was evident throughout the team.
This may have only been a warm-up game, but there was no question that the team were there to get stuck in. In particular, Magnus Bradbury reminded the Edinburgh crowd what we had been missing and was rewarded with a wrecking ball try for his efforts.
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All other additions added value. Matt Scott was dynamic, Paul Hill was abrasive and Ross Thompson was quick and creative.
This was certainly a performance of individuals, but that is also where the problems came from. The play that sums up the first half was when Ben Vellacott saw an opportunity to pick and go, he was clean through and made 30 metres. When he was brought down he was isolated and Gloucester won the turnover. Edinburgh didn't manage to regroup to deal with the counter-attack and conceded a try. They attacked and defended as individuals. It was fragmented, lacking structure and cohesion as a team.
The second half was a different match entirely. In my days as a teacher, the pupils’ names that you knew by the end of the first day were the ones who had done something very good or very bad. There was no name that sprung to mind at the end of the second period. Instead, there was the satisfaction of a team coming together and working like a machine of intricate moving parts.
The half started positively with Tom Dodd scoring a try after only two minutes. The attacking structures and movements were well-drilled and intricate. A great deal of work and countless offloads were required to make small gains, but this didn’t matter as the accuracy was faultless so the phases were incessant. Dave Cherry put Edinburgh back in the lead with 25 minutes to go.
From that moment on the possession and territory were all Gloucester’s and Edinburgh treated us to a masterclass in defence. No matter how many times and in how many ways Gloucester tried to cross the whitewash, Edinburgh’s goal-line defence was watertight. By committing minimal players to the breakdown Edinburgh always had numbers on their feet ready to deal with what was thrown at them. Through communication and structure, there were no gaps that Gloucester could punch through. This second half team evidently benefited from a summer training together whilst the first half team had been impacted by injuries and international duties.
Gregor Townsend and Mike Blair both talked in the past about giving away “good penalties" which is a concept I have been sceptical of. On several occasions in the first half, Edinburgh gave away a series of penalties which allowed Gloucester to piggyback up the pitch and resulted in tries. In the second half, the penalty count was higher but undoubtedly prevented a number of tries. Discipline has been costly for Edinburgh in recent years and will be something to keep an eye on.
Where Edinburgh did struggle was to exit the few times they did get possession. This was epitomised when Ben Healy put in a mammoth tackle which, with the help of Ali Price, held the ball up over the line. He then kicked the resulting try line drop out straight into touch, bringing play back for a Gloucester scrum under the posts.
Whilst there were fewer names that would be recognisable to the wider rugby audience, the second half team were all familiar to Edinburgh supporters even if it is just through the academy or the Edinburgh-A team. The most notable performance was from winger Lewis Wells who looked comfortable and established as he stepped up from the academy to first-team action.
Although this was only a pre-season friendly it felt far from it. There was no doubt that the players gave it their all, perhaps because they knew they only needed to do so for 40 minutes. There was doggedness, there was determination. There was flair, there was function. The question now is can Edinburgh put these attributes on the pitch at the same time.
An extremely difficult season opening with Leinster awaits, followed by three South African matches and all the travel that entails. The prospect is daunting and there are improvements to be made, but there are enough positives to give Edinburgh confidence that they can cause some upsets in these opening games.
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