Edinburgh Rugby revel in 'scarce' result at Zebre as 'good leader' emerges

Edinburgh Rugby head coach Sean Everitt admitted his side weren’t at their best in Italy - but insists they have to enjoy results like their 29-12 win away to Zebre.

The capital club needed the last play of the game to secure the fourth try and the bonus point having twice been reduced to 14 men with yellow cards in either half for Malelili Satala and Harri Morris. The scores came from Matt Currie, Freddy Douglas, Magnus Bradbury and finally Tom Currie as the visitors left Parma sitting top of the URC table after their third round fixture.

“It wasn’t our best performance but we obviously ground it out and managed to get the bonus point that we were happy with,” said Everitt. “We played positive rugby and could have had an extra three tries in that first half.

Edinburgh head coach Sean Everitt pleased with ‘scarce’ result away to Zebre

Edinburgh made it three wins from three to start the new URC season as they beat Zebre away from home (Pic: Edinburgh Rugby) | Edinburgh Rugby

“I don’t want to be too critical, we’ve got to enjoy these wins. A bonus point win in Parma has been scarce for Edinburgh.

“We would have been disappointed not getting a bonus point. It was certainly a game where we dominated them in terms of possession and territory, especially in the first half.

“But credit to Zebre, they are a good defensive team and do cause problems for other teams as well and they’re going to win some games too. We’ll take the positives out of it.

“We’ve got two away wins in a row. In the past we’ve been struggling to do that and now we’ve got two out of two on the road. I’m very proud of our boys, the character that they showed and the turnaround they’ve been able to make.”

Asked what pleased him most about his side’s performance, the South African added: “I think it’s just how controlled we were when they came back at us. Our defence was really good.

“We attacked with intent but at times we weren’t accurate enough, but I thought our kicking game was good. Hector Patterson kicked some really good contestables and we managed to win some of them back and put them under pressure.

“In a game of rugby like this you want to win the territory battle and I would presume we won that hands down.”

At the centre of their attack was stand-off James Grayson, who continues to impress in an Edinburgh shirt. The Englishman has gained huge plaudits for the way he has pulled the strings in his new side’s opening three fixtures.

“He certainly does drive our attack well and he’s a good leader within our group,” explained Everitt. “He gets the message across really clearly and he understands what he needs from the players in front of him and they respond to him. We’re happy with where James is at and hopefully he just continues to grow in this position.”

Ewan Ashman also played his first minutes of the season while Marshall Sykes made his return from injury, reducing the extent of Edinburgh’s lengthy unavailable list. “It’s great that we’ve got some players coming back,” added Everitt.

“The guys that have got their opportunities over the last few weeks have done well and to get Marshall back now when some of the guys are a bit weary is great as it now allows us to rest the guys who have carried the big load over the last four weeks.”

Get our rugby newsletter by clicking here