Edinburgh defy Italian fightback

EDINBURGH held off a determined Zebre fightback to take important PRO12 points despite doing their best to throw it away.

After a cagey opening, Edinburgh got their act together to take a 13-7 halftime lead with tries from Chris Dean and Will Helu canceling out an effort from Tommaso Boni.

They extended thhe lead shortly after half time before Carlo Canna scored to bring them back to within 11 points.

Then with five to go, Nathan Fowles’ sin-binning for persistant offside infringements allowed Andries Van Shalkwyk to nip in for Zebre to earn the losing bonus and heap pressure on the Scots defence until the end.

Edinburgh head coach, Duncan Hodge said: “It was a hard-fought battle, they made it incredibly difficult right until the end. We got there in the end but it wasn’t easy.”

Hodge had given his side licence to thrill in a bid to get their Pro12 campaign back on track after three consecutive defeats but all they managed was a Weir penalty in the opening 30 minutes and it was Zebere who took the lead through Boni’s try.

Just before half time Edinburgh were able to turn possession into points when Dean scored.

Helu extended the lead to 18-7 before Cana and Van Shalkwyk ensured a nervy finish after Fowles had been sent ot the bin.