Edinburgh get the job done against struggling Zebre Parma as they climb to sixth

Edinburgh ran in six tries to beat struggling Zebre Parma 40-14 in their United Rugby Championship clash on Friday, a result that lifts them to sixth on the table.

Ewan Ashman (2), WP Nel, Christopher Dean, Ben Vellacott and Javan Sebastian all crossed for the rampant Scottish team, with Ben Healy and Cameron Scott adding extras.

Geronimo Prisciantelli and Jacopo Trulla went over for Zebre Parma on the night at Hive Stadium as they suffered their 14th defeat from 16 matches the URC season thus far.

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After an opening spell in which they were on the back foot, Edinburgh steadily began to exert more pressure on Zebre, and that pressure told just past the quarter-of-an-hour mark when Scotland hooker Ashman finished off from a lineout maul after a penalty had been sent to touch on the right. Healy hooked the conversion attempt just wide of the far post.

Zebre hit back less than 10 minutes later when Prisciantelli slalomed his way through the Edinburgh defence and touched down close to the posts. The home team protested that Grant Gilchrist had been blocked in the build-up but, after a review, referee Ben Breakspear ruled that the try should stand. Thomas Dominguez’s conversion put the Italians in front.

Edinburgh had a chance to hit back immediately when they sent a penalty to touch some 15 metres out on the left, but this time the throw-in was stolen by the defence. Two or three minutes later, however, they tried again from the identical position, and this time they got it right, with hooker Ashman claiming his second.

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Healy converted, and a couple of minutes later the fly-half added another two points after Nel had got Edinburgh’s third try. The scoring move again began with a lineout, but this time the play went out to the backs. The pack joined in the close-range assault on the line, and Nel finished off from very close range.

Beginning the second half 19-7 behind, Zebre were far from finished and, after a long period of stalemate, they scored a try when winger Trulla finished off following lengthy pressure and Giovanni Montemauri converted.

Edinburgh got the elusive fourth try with a quarter of an hour to play. A maul was collapsed illegally but play continued and, after good work by Vellacott, Healy popped up a pass from which Dean scored in the right corner, with the former converting to make it 26-14.

Vellacott added a fifth a few minutes from time, then in time added on Sebastian got a sixth touchdown off a lineout, with Scott converting both.

The teams

Edinburgh: 15 Wes Goosen, 14 Matt Currie, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 James Lang, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Ben Healy, 9 Ali Price, 8 Viliame Mata, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Grant Gilchrist (c), 4 Sam Skinner, 3 WP Nel, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Dave Cherry, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Javan Sebastian, 19 Marshall Sykes, 20 Luke Crosbie, 21 Ben Vellacott, 22 Cammy Scott, 23 Chris Dean

Zebre Parma: 15 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 14 Jacopo Trulla, 13 Fetuli Paea, 12 Enrico Lucchin, 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Giovanni Montemauri, 9 Thomas Dominguez, 8 Giovanni Licata, 7 Taina Fox-Matamua, 6 Giacomo Ferrari, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 4 Matteo Canali, 3 Juan Pitinari, 2 Giampietro Ribaldi, 1 Muhamed Hasa
Replacements: 16 Tommaso Di Bartolomeo, 17 Samuele Taddei, 18 Riccardo Genovese, 19 David Sisi, 20 Bautista Stavile, 21 Gonzalo Garcia, 22 Damiano Mazza, 23 Lorenzo Pani

Referee: Ben Breakspear (WRU)
Assistant referees: Ru Campbell (SRU), David Sutherland (SRU)
TMO: Ian Davies (WRU)

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