Following a 26-24 victory for Edinburgh over Gloucester, here are our five takeaways from the Investec Champions Cup encounter at Hive Stadium on Friday.
The top line
Edinburgh kept themselves in the qualification hunt ahead of the final round of pool games as they came from 18-5 behind to overcome a struggling Gloucester side.
Considering the strength of the respective squads, it was a dreadful first-half performance from the hosts, who wasted a series of promising positions by consistently knocking the ball on. The Cherry and Whites duly took advantage, touching down twice through Josh Hathaway and Charlie Atkinson, while George Barton kicked two penalties.
The hosts’ only response before the break came via Ben Vellacott, but they upped the intensity in the second period and reduced the arrears via Ewan Ashman’s score. Barton’s third three-pointer kept Edinburgh at arm’s length, but the pressure was increasing on the visitors and Liam McConnell’s try set up a thrilling final quarter.
Sean Everitt’s men had the momentum, however, and duly won the game when a powerful driving maul was illegally hauled down by the visitors, leading to a penalty try. Although Gloucester made it a two-point game via their full-back, they could not snatch it at the end as Edinburgh held on.
Breakdown masterclass
Ever since Freddy Douglas played for Scotland U20 as an 18-year-old, plenty has been expected of him. He made his international debut in November 2024, becoming the youngest player to feature for the country since 1963, but he has not quite established himself in the Edinburgh XV since then.
It is rather confusing as to why that has been the case when Douglas was absolutely incredible on Friday. The youngster was unmovable when he locked onto the ball, and Gloucester, quite frankly, did not know how to deal with him at the breakdown. There was turnover after turnover and, in truth, he was pretty much the sole reason they were still in the game.
When you add in his ball-carrying and outstanding skill set, Scotland have an wonderful talent on their hands. Rory Darge is the first choice openside and an superb player, but Gregor Townsend must be tempted to give Douglas plenty of game time in the Six Nations. The Scots, despite their shambolic pathway system, have managed to find a new superstar.
Gloucester fly-half situation
On paper, the addition of international playmaker Ross Byrne appeared to be a smart one. He is an experienced fly-half who has proved himself as a solid player at the highest level, rarely letting either Ireland or Leinster down.
But in the very different surroundings of Kingsholm, where he is expected to be the main man – in stark contrast to playing second fiddle to Johnny Sexton for years – Byrne has struggled in England. Fans have been calling for the talented Atkinson, who has generally been at full-back, to be handed the number 10 jersey, and they got their wish in the Scottish capital.
On the evidence of the first half display, the 24-year-old deserves an extended run in that position as he did what the Irishman hasn’t and took the ball to the line. In truth, the Cherry and Whites had limited attacking opportunities, but when they did get the ball in the opposition half, the fly-half called and executed some excellent moves.
Unfortunately, the second period was not quite as fruitful with the hosts stepping up the intensity in the tighter exchanges and effectively denying Gloucester any chances to mount an attack after the break. As a result, the pressure came on the pivot, and he made two critical errors.
The first saw him make a mess of a catch, resulting in an Edinburgh lineout in a great position, and from that set-piece, the Scotsmen set up a maul and drove towards the line. With the home side looking set to cross the whitewash, Atkinson illegally took it down and was duly sin-binned. A penalty try was also awarded, which proved to be the winning score. It was an abysmal end to an otherwise good performance from the playmaker.
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Edinburgh Bomb Squad
The Scotsmen raised eyebrows by starting their second choice front-row with their trio of Ashman, Pierre Schoeman and Paul Hill on the bench. Like England and the Springboks, the intention was to have their most dynamic players on at the end of the game.
With the visitors only 11-5 ahead after half-an-hour when the change was made, it appeared to be a sensible call, but the tone had been set early on with mistakes ruining promising positions. However, that extra power began to show in the second period, with Ashman and Schoeman in particular having plenty of rumbles in the loose.
That trio, alongside back-rower Ben Muncaster, made a massive impact after the interval to rescue what was a pretty dire situation at half-time.
How it stands
Every team in Pool 2 went into the third round of Investec Champions Cup matches with one victory and one defeat. Edinburgh and Gloucester, both on five points, occupied the bottom two positions in the table, but they were only just one point behind Bath at the summit.
This victory is therefore vital for Edinburgh, who go up to 10 points and with an outstanding chance of reaching the round-of-16. Particularly with Bath next up, who impressively went to France and defeated Castres, they very much needed this result.
As for Gloucester, a losing bonus-point keeps them in the hunt, but they will be devastated after giving up a 13-point advantage. They do have a chance to qualify and have home advantage in the final group game, but it is against a rejuvenated Toulon outfit.