A MASTER OF THE WIND-UP
Cockerill riles Wilson by claiming he is using absences as an excuse ahead of showdown
When it comes to mind games, wind- ups and pushing the buttons of opposition coaches, edinburgh’s Richard Cockerill is in a league of his own.
even the normally unflappable Danny Wilson, head coach of rivals Glasgow Warriors, couldn’t help but bite back at his opponent ahead of today’s Pro14 derby after Cockerill accused him of getting his excuses in early.
The englishman had heard that six Glasgow players were set to miss the match through either having Covid or having to self-isolate due to coming into contact with someone with the virus, while others such as hooker Fraser Brown are missing through injury.
‘We expect a tough game,’ said Cockerill. ‘It sounded during the week that Danny was getting his excuses in, didn’t it?’
After painstakingly going through the Glasgow starting XV for today’s match one by one, he said: ‘We at edinburgh, players and coaches, have never thought this is an easy game or an easy win and we respect them. They are a good team with very good players. Like ourselves, they have the odd body missing but that is a very good forward pack. And that backline — huw Jones, Lee Jones, nick Grigg, Sam Johnson, Ratu Tagive, Brandon Thomson, Ali Price — is pretty sharp.
‘I don’t know what’s happening behind the scenes at Glasgow and I don’t really care. Whatever team Glasgow brings will be a good team because they’re a good side and a good squad. There are good players in there who will hurt you if you don’t get it right. We’ll treat them with full respect and make sure we’re on our game. We’ve picked a good team.
Speaking later at the Warriors s press conference, Wilson replied curtly by saying that the edinburgh head coach was entitled to ‘ his little opinion, that’s fine, no problems’.
But Cockerill wasn’t finished. Warming to his theme that it is his side and not Glasgow who should be viewed as the underdogs today, the arch mischief-maker went on to make comparisons between his team and the Warriors. he claimed he has never had a satisfactory answer from the SRU as to why his rivals — both teams are funded by the governing body — had a bigger player budget. he did not reveal the budgets of either side nor the discrepancy between them.
‘It’s edinburgh against Glasgow, so we are definitely not favourites,’ he said. ‘They are a good squad. They still operate on a bigger budget than edinburgh, so they should have a good squad. They should pick from strength because they have a deep squad and some very good players.’
Asked if he ever had taken the matter up with SRU chief executive Mark Dodson, he replied: ‘every time I speak to him. Those are private conversations. It is what it is, so I just want people to understand where we sit in it all.’
edinburgh are able to field an even stronger team than the one that beat Sale Sharks in the heineken Champions Cup on their last outing, with the Scotland international trio of winger Darcy Graham, scrum-half henry Pyrgos and back-row Jamie Ritchie all returning. Graham a nd Pyrgos are straight replacements for youngsters Jack Blain and Charlie Shiel — both of whom drop out of the match day 23 — with flanker Magnus Bradbury dropping to the bench to make way for Ritchie.
‘Danny and I know each other pretty well,’ said Cock er ill .‘ It’ s not a secret how edinburgh are going to play. It doesn’t take much working out. ‘It has been tough for Danny and Jonny Bell at Glasgow. They’ve come into a new environment with no pre-season. All coaches want to make slight changes.
‘Glasgow have always had an expansive game. They are very dangerous on the counter-attack and they are a team who want to play with ball in hand. They are trying to get the balance to that.
‘Although we are accredited with being a set-piece, kicking team, in the last four years we’ve scored lots of tries and won some very big games.
‘Danny and I will just look at whatever is right to win the game. When you need points and are under pressure to win games you need to do whatever you need to do.
‘We have pretty much got everybody available and we have had a full training week. Our aim is to sort out our own stuff and just make sure we perform as well as we can.’