Edinburgh player ratings v Leinster: Duhan van der Merwe ‘blows hot and cold’ under ‘intense spotlight’ while bench cannot ‘get over the line’
Duhan van der Merwe (right) and Ross Thompson (left) during Edinburgh's defeat to Leinster
Following Edinburgh’s 28-20 defeat to Leinster at the Aviva Stadium, Dublin, here is how we scored Sean Everitt’s side in the URC clash.
Edinburgh player ratings v Leinster
15 Harry Paterson: Always seemed to pick the positive option, often stepping in to have an effect in attack too. 6
14 Malelili Satala: Got himself on the scoresheet with a fine effort early on, and had some nice flashes ball-in-hand around that. Potentially drifted off a touch in the second-half in comparison, but overall solid. 6
13 Wes Goosen: Well managed by Leinster’s aggressive defence across the game, but stepped up with some strong defence of his own as well. 6
12 James Lang: Stepped up with an astute performance. His work as that extra link player really helped get a tune out of Edinburgh’s attack, and backed that up with some strong defensive efforts, notably winning a turnover. 7
11 Duhan van der Merwe: Blew hot and cold tonight, which will not do his Scotland chances any favours ahead of the Six Nations. As always, posed a threat ball-in-hand and nabbed a nice try for his efforts, but couldn’t quite nail the high-balls, which is something Gregor Townsend would have had an intense spotlight on. 6
10 Ross Thompson: Endured a tough start from the tee, but seemed to shake it off quickly. Managed to get his side playing some nice rugby ball-in-hand, unpicking an aggressive Leinster defence as a result. 6
9 Ben Vellacott: A busy shift from the bloodied and bruised number nine. Looked to inject proper pace and tempo into his side’s attack around the ruck, be it with his distribution or in the carry, and pleasingly looked to get involved in the link-up play with some nice support lines. However, he had a shocking two minutes which proved crucial as Leinster got the momentum they needed to win the game. 5
Back-row
8 Magnus Bradbury: Heavily involved in every aspect of the game, as you would expect from the powerful back-rower. Set the tone for his side’s efforts in the tight on both sides of the ball, making 18 tackles and 10 carries, and will certainly boost his chances of making the Scotland match-day squad. 7
7 Freddy Douglas: Potentially went under the radar prior to his exit, but did the ugly stuff very well. Got heavily involved in the defensive efforts and was always in and around the breakdown, winning one turnover and forcing Leinster to infringe twice more. 7
Want more from Planet Rugby? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for world-class coverage you can trust.
6 Ben Muncaster: Worked his socks off in a gripping battle up front, and ended the night with a tidy stats chart of 54 metres from just five carries alongside 10 tackles. Unfortunatey seemed to pick up a head knock in the second-half. 7
Tight five
5 Glen Young: Trucked really well right across his shift, rolling his sleeves up and getting stuck in across the park. Threw his body around in defence with an astonishing 20 tackles, and added his sizeable frame to his side’s attack as well with 10 carries. 7
4 Callum Hunter-Hill: Not as impactful as his lock partner, but that’s not a huge criticism. Just did all the ugly stuff his side needed. 6
3 Paul Hill: Nailed the basics of his role, and will be pleased with his work as a result. Scrummed well and got involved in the battle up front. 6
2 Jerry Blyth-Lafferty: A very decent night’s work from the hooker, who just found himself right in the thick of things. Was a major presence on both sides of the ball, leading the way for carries across the game (10) and sitting second in the tackle count (12) prior to his exit, and helped set the tone in the set-piece as well. Really strong effort. 7
1 Boan Venter: His work in the scrum has been a key weapon for Edinburgh this season, and tonight was no exception. Went about his business very well in that department and also got involved around the park as well. 7
Replacements: The bench were slowly deployed across the second-half, at periods when the game was in the balance, but they couldn’t quite get their side over the line. It was by no means a poor effort from the replacements, it must be stressed, but they couldn’t quite replicate the efforts of their Leinster counterparts. 5