An extra edge to proceedings at training this week reflects players’ awareness that they are into knockout mode as they await the visit of Cardiff Blues in today’s European Challenge Cup final, according to their coach, but he knows that a defeat could have additional implications.
“We’re fighting on two fronts and next week I’ll pick the best side to win in the league, but we just need to get Cardiff out of the way first,” said Richard Cockerill. “It’s a big two weeks because the reality is that we could lose to Cardiff and then lose next week and then the momentum of the season changes very quickly.”
Strangely a victory over Ulster next week will bring more immediate rewards by securing a European Champions Cup place next season, but Cockerill claimed that leaving out international forwards Ben Toolis, Ross Ford and Darryl Marfo from his selection for today’s match, along with Hamish Watson, who is nursing a shoulder injury, is not about squad management, saying: “I think I have picked the right side for this game.
“They’re all important. If we lose next week we can recover because there are two more games, but if we lose to Cardiff we’re out. We’re not a good enough side to cruise through games at 80 per cent and know that there’s enough in the tank to win games because we’re not a good enough side yet. We’ve just got to keep on developing. We’re nine months into a project that needs to last a little bit longer than that. Nothing’s solved. We are only 60% of where we can be – this is just a starting point.”
Marfo and Ford will consequently play for Watsonians today, while the quality of the competition for second-row places means Toolis is rested/dropped.
“It’s great we’ve got competition and two international players playing club rugby because they can’t get in our side at this point,” Cockerill said. “[Grant] Gilchrist has been the form lock of the Six Nations, [Lewis] Carmichael has played well. [Club captain Fraser] McKenzie missed out last week. It is Ben’s turn this week. I’ll look after those four locks and they will all get game time. Ben is playing well but so are Carmichael, McKenzie, Gilchrist so for this game that is the right combination.”
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