Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby TheSmidge on Mon Jan 10, 2022 2:04 pm

liveinhope wrote:
dolf_lundgren wrote:I have heard it said that Hastings moving away was good for him, Bradbury and Kinghorn, the suggestion was they were very sociable.


Took me a while to cotton on to the reference to "very sociable"! Clearly very pc.An earlier poster referred to "distractions" affecting Bradbury.
Anyway now very clear that at 26 he still has it in him to have a stellar international career if he sets his mind to it. Look I like Fagerson who is probably a step up from Haining and Bayliss but Bradbury at his best is capable of a higher level and Townsend will be missing a big chance if he doesn't have him pencilled in to start at 8 against England.


Both Fagerson and Bradbury have a higher ceiling and can push on. Clearly the former has more time on his side, but right now could be Maggie's moment. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the Scotland no 8 shirt against England is his to lose right now. If/when Dempsey becomes SQ, then its a different question, but right now Maggie has to grasp his chance in the absence of BBM to show he can be a first pick for Edinburgh and Scotland.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby doedin on Mon Jan 10, 2022 5:47 pm

I agree about Bradbury being the in form 8 at the moment. He and Fagerson are slightly different players but both can do the job.

Bradbury has always had the physique, pace and the strength but his ball handling and off loading have sometimes been a bit dodgy, he ain't a Big Bill when fielding box kicks and running them back and off loading, but then again few are! He is also a bit dodgy off the back of a scrum. However he is easily the most aggressive and brutal runner and tackler we have and has an engine on him which means he is good for a full 80 minutes. He is also one of the most pacy back rows around, remember him scoring his try in the famous draw against England. Given Scotlands other back row options then we really do need someone like him to keep getting over the gain line and give us front foot ball.

I like Bradbury as a player. Blair has obviously worked wonders with him. Bradbury's displays for Embra recently have been might impressive and he has literally destroyed the opposition. His break with the ball and off load in the 80th minute against Cardiff with blood streaming from his head wound he incurred earlier just typified his new found confidence and motivation. He would be my pick for 8 against England.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby dolf_lundgren on Mon Jan 10, 2022 10:04 pm

I agree, when on form he is by far our heaviest carrier, we dotn breed many who can put people on their backside in both defence and attack.

Fagerson is slightly different, but he has been relatively quiet for a while now, Dempsey has pushed him out ot the 6 shirt. Odd to say at 23 but he is living off rep a bit, people seem to see the player they would like him to be rather than what he is delivering right now. He is a good player though and will still play a part for Scotland Im sure, but right now Bradbury is what we need. Arguably Darge is closer to Watson than Fagerson is to Bradbury. Very healthy competition.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby Friday Knight Lights on Tue Jan 11, 2022 11:45 am

dolf_lundgren wrote:I agree, when on form he is by far our heaviest carrier, we dotn breed many who can put people on their backside in both defence and attack.

Fagerson is slightly different, but he has been relatively quiet for a while now, Dempsey has pushed him out ot the 6 shirt. Odd to say at 23 but he is living off rep a bit, people seem to see the player they would like him to be rather than what he is delivering right now. He is a good player though and will still play a part for Scotland Im sure, but right now Bradbury is what we need. Arguably Darge is closer to Watson than Fagerson is to Bradbury. Very healthy competition.


Fagerson works better at 6 than 8 where he's expected to be a primary carrier which isn't really his game. He relies on quick feet to make yards in attack and an international level for tight carries that doesn't really work.

Bradbury has the size and athletic power to make an international eight and after a few years of not showing that enough in the carry he's really been very good of late.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby robdinsdale on Tue Jan 11, 2022 1:41 pm

Friday Knight Lights wrote:
dolf_lundgren wrote:I agree, when on form he is by far our heaviest carrier, we dotn breed many who can put people on their backside in both defence and attack.

Fagerson is slightly different, but he has been relatively quiet for a while now, Dempsey has pushed him out ot the 6 shirt. Odd to say at 23 but he is living off rep a bit, people seem to see the player they would like him to be rather than what he is delivering right now. He is a good player though and will still play a part for Scotland Im sure, but right now Bradbury is what we need. Arguably Darge is closer to Watson than Fagerson is to Bradbury. Very healthy competition.


Fagerson works better at 6 than 8 where he's expected to be a primary carrier which isn't really his game. He relies on quick feet to make yards in attack and an international level for tight carries that doesn't really work.

Bradbury has the size and athletic power to make an international eight and after a few years of not showing that enough in the carry he's really been very good of late.


I think Fagerson's role might end up being something like Ryan Wilson - someone who can do a job across the entire back row but doesn't stand out at international level.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby Weegie59 on Tue Jan 11, 2022 2:10 pm

As well as his on-field performance, it looks like he has been working on fitness and power. His body shape ,whilst still huge, seems to show a lot of behind the scenes work, so hopefully he gets the reward for this in the 6 Nations. Similar to Mark Bennett. Lost track of what ,if anything, has changed with the strength and fitness team but it seems to be working on the field.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby robdinsdale on Tue Jan 11, 2022 4:57 pm

JDCSR wrote:I was wondering recently whether George Taylor making the move over to Glasgow could make sense.

Our centre options are well covered by the below:

12: Lang, Dean, Hutchinson
13: Bennett, Johnston, Currie, Immelman

Without Horne and Grigg Glasgow have only:

12: Johnson, McDowell, Fergusson
13: Tuipolutu, Steyn

Given Steyn also pops up on the wing and Taylor can play both 12 and 13 he might fit in quite well there, he looked very good last season. Would give them a next Scots born back too. :P


Glasgow also have Jordan that they just signed from Ayr so perhaps not such a big imbalance.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby doedin on Wed Jan 12, 2022 11:25 am

Weegie59 wrote:As well as his on-field performance, it looks like he has been working on fitness and power. His body shape ,whilst still huge, seems to show a lot of behind the scenes work, so hopefully he gets the reward for this in the 6 Nations. Similar to Mark Bennett. Lost track of what ,if anything, has changed with the strength and fitness team but it seems to be working on the field.


Absolutely agree with this. We seemed so much fitter than Cardiff, not just match fit but stronger and faster. Whilst the likes of Bennett, Laing and others looked very fast and acceleration was impressive it was the fitness of the forwards that impressed me. They were almost always first to the breakdown, cleared out impressively and in defence were tackling and getting back into the defensive line very quickly. I was comparing our forwards to the Cardiff guys and we just look slimmer and fitter. Both Nel and Shoeman looked like they have dropped a few kilos of fat but increased muscle mass, the rest of the pack looked lean. Compare Nel, Shoeman, GC and Ritchie with their opposite numbers Carre, Arhip, Thornton and Turnbull and there is a huge difference and it showed.

Embra were excellent in choice of ball to attack, we were happy defending or in possession and going through phases until we saw mismatches and went for it - when we saw Carre and then Turnbull in the defensive line then Laing and then Bennett attacked their shoulders with pace and both led to tries. I like how Blair has encouraged the team to take these types of decisions on the pitch rather than the more formulaic approach of previous managers.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby robdinsdale on Wed Jan 12, 2022 11:31 am

doedin wrote:
Weegie59 wrote:As well as his on-field performance, it looks like he has been working on fitness and power. His body shape ,whilst still huge, seems to show a lot of behind the scenes work, so hopefully he gets the reward for this in the 6 Nations. Similar to Mark Bennett. Lost track of what ,if anything, has changed with the strength and fitness team but it seems to be working on the field.


Absolutely agree with this. We seemed so much fitter than Cardiff, not just match fit but stronger and faster. Whilst the likes of Bennett, Laing and others looked very fast and acceleration was impressive it was the fitness of the forwards that impressed me. They were almost always first to the breakdown, cleared out impressively and in defence were tackling and getting back into the defensive line very quickly. I was comparing our forwards to the Cardiff guys and we just look slimmer and fitter. Both Nel and Shoeman looked like they have dropped a few kilos of fat but increased muscle mass, the rest of the pack looked lean. Compare Nel, Shoeman, GC and Ritchie with their opposite numbers Carre, Arhip, Thornton and Turnbull and there is a huge difference and it showed.

Embra were excellent in choice of ball to attack, we were happy defending or in possession and going through phases until we saw mismatches and went for it - when we saw Carre and then Turnbull in the defensive line then Laing and then Bennett attacked their shoulders with pace and both led to tries. I like how Blair has encouraged the team to take these types of decisions on the pitch rather than the more formulaic approach of previous managers.


Boan Venter also looks significantly fitter than when he joined us a year ago.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby doedin on Wed Jan 12, 2022 11:55 am

robdinsdale wrote:
doedin wrote:
Weegie59 wrote:As well as his on-field performance, it looks like he has been working on fitness and power. His body shape ,whilst still huge, seems to show a lot of behind the scenes work, so hopefully he gets the reward for this in the 6 Nations. Similar to Mark Bennett. Lost track of what ,if anything, has changed with the strength and fitness team but it seems to be working on the field.


Absolutely agree with this. We seemed so much fitter than Cardiff, not just match fit but stronger and faster. Whilst the likes of Bennett, Laing and others looked very fast and acceleration was impressive it was the fitness of the forwards that impressed me. They were almost always first to the breakdown, cleared out impressively and in defence were tackling and getting back into the defensive line very quickly. I was comparing our forwards to the Cardiff guys and we just look slimmer and fitter. Both Nel and Shoeman looked like they have dropped a few kilos of fat but increased muscle mass, the rest of the pack looked lean. Compare Nel, Shoeman, GC and Ritchie with their opposite numbers Carre, Arhip, Thornton and Turnbull and there is a huge difference and it showed.

Embra were excellent in choice of ball to attack, we were happy defending or in possession and going through phases until we saw mismatches and went for it - when we saw Carre and then Turnbull in the defensive line then Laing and then Bennett attacked their shoulders with pace and both led to tries. I like how Blair has encouraged the team to take these types of decisions on the pitch rather than the more formulaic approach of previous managers.


Boan Venter also looks significantly fitter than when he joined us a year ago.


Agreed ... and a better player for it.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby Croft_No.6 on Wed Jan 12, 2022 12:25 pm

In this vein of fitness of the players, Mark Robertson joins the coaching team:

https://www.edinburghrugby.org/the-clubhouse/%E2%80%8Brobertson-returns-as-head-of-strength-and-conditioning
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby Friday Knight Lights on Wed Jan 12, 2022 12:38 pm

Croft_No.6 wrote:In this vein of fitness of the players, Mark Robertson joins the coaching team:

https://www.edinburghrugby.org/the-clubhouse/%E2%80%8Brobertson-returns-as-head-of-strength-and-conditioning


Would be interested in the recruitment process they went through on this one. His experience at Clermont is interesting but this feels a bit jobs for the boys.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby Tichtheid on Wed Jan 12, 2022 12:56 pm

I suppose Al Strokosch would have been "acting head" of S&C in recent months.

Robertson's CV is good, there have been some good appointments made on the coaching side of things, hopefully Robertson will help give Embra the edge in the coming weeks, months, years.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby BigD163 on Wed Jan 12, 2022 4:37 pm

Looks like a good hire.

Been involved in academies and the international side as part of the S+C team and led a big club in France. CV looks good.
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Re: Edinburgh v Cardiff Sat 8th Jan

Postby doedin on Fri Jan 14, 2022 11:10 pm

Just watched that Cardiff team scare the sh1t out of a Quins team that was almost full strength. Cardiff threw it away in the last minute due to a brainless run by Adams to get turned over and concede a penalty to lose the game. Cardiff almost looked good but can't decide if they were or were Quins just rubbish? We had try BP secured by HT and took foot off the pedal in 2nd half against Cardiff yet Quins really struggled with them. Not sure what is going on - are we that good, were Cardiff that bad against us, are Quins not as good as they think? Strange, very strange.
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