Double celebration for Robertson on his birthday

Published 30 Dec 2009 11:46 0 Comments

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HEAD coach Rob Moffat welcomes back Scotland lock Jim Hamilton into Edinburgh's starting line-up - one of four changes to the side that lost at Firhill - for the Greaves Sports 1872 Cup decider at Murrayfield on Saturday (2 January, kick off 3.05pm, live on STV) and expects a spirited response from his players.

Hamilton, 27, has missed the opening four months of the season after suffering from patella tendonitis.

But the former Leicester forward has been given the all-clear to resume first team duties - much to the delight of Moffat.

Moffat said: "Jim (Hamilton) has come back in after being out with a long term injury. It is good to have him back and, like it has been with Ross Rennie and David Callam, his return gives the squad a massive boost."

Following the 25-12 defeat at Firhill, the former Borders PE teacher has reintroduced prop Kyle Traynor into the front row, Alan MacDonald reclaims the number six jersey after recovering from a rib injury while wing Mark Robertson returns with John Houston moving across to inside centre.

As a result, Moffat is expecting a positive response from his team heading into the deciding match where both the Greaves Sports 1872 Cup and Magners League points are at stake.

He added: "There should be a reaction to Sunday's result from our players - we didn't play well and we lost to our closest rivals.

"Glasgow went top of the league while we dropped down to fifth place. So this is a massively important game for us; not just because it is Glasgow, but because it is a big game in the wider scheme of the Magners League.

"There was a good crowd at Firhill last week and it would be great to see another record-breaking crowd at Murrayfield on Saturday."

Robertson, from Melrose, returned to the starting line-up for the first time since early December and it was a double celebration for the powerful wing because he also turned 25 today (Wednesday).

Moffat explained the reasoning behind his elevation into the starting line-up and says the Scotland 'A' back has impressed over recent weeks.

He said: "Mark has looked sharp coming off the bench over the past couple of games - he has put his hand up for selection.

"We thought we would freshen things up a bit and we are hoping the team will perform a lot better than we did last week. We need to get the basics right in order to get our game going."

Mike Blair is still ruled out with an ankle injury, but Edinburgh's first team captain is edging ever closer to a return.

Vice captain Allister Hogg is expected to be out for a few months after undergoing surgery to repair a hip problem at Spire Murrayfield Hospital last week.

Stand-off David Blair (ankle) continues to be ruled out while club captain Simon Cross is still out with a knee injury along with Andrew Easson (knee), Ryan Grant (ankle) and Simon Webster (hamstring).

Edinburgh Rugby Club team to play Glasgow Warriors in the Magners League at Murrayfield (Saturday 2 January, kick-off 3.05pm, live on STV)

15 Chris Paterson (captain)

14 Mark Robertson

13 Ben Cairns

12 John Houston

11 Tim Visser

10 Phil Godman

9 Greig Laidlaw

1 Kyle Traynor

2 Ross Ford

3 Geoff Cross

4 Scott MacLeod

5 Jim Hamilton

6 Alan MacDonald

7 Roddy Grant

8 Scott Newlands

Substitutes: Sean Crombie/Andrew Kelly, Allan Jacobsen, Craig Hamilton, David Callam, Ross Samson, Nick De Luca, Jim Thompson.

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