Gunner Henry has much to get used to
Henry Pyrgos started his first game for eight months last week, and it wasn’t just playing that was a novelty, writes ALAN SHAW.
The Edinburgh scrum- half, part of the squad for tomorrow night’s home game against Cardiff, sustained a concussion in pre- season training, but returned to help the capital club to their first win of the campaign.
He explained: “Usually when you had a home game pre-covid, you could go to the ground and be involved helping out on matchday. But now if you’re not in the 23, you have to be at home like everyone else.
“On the TV, with the piped- in crowd noise and stuff, it still looks empty but it feels like you have a little bit of atmosphere.
“So when I first got back, it was a bit strange actually being able to hear the commentator commentating on the game sat in the stand!”
Another novelty for Pyrgos is that this will be his first game with Nathan Chamberlain as his halfback partner, as first-choice standoff, Jaco van der Walt, has yet to return from his wedding in South Africa.
And the pair couldn’t be more different.
Pyrgos has more than 200 games for Glasgow, Edinburgh and Scotland under his belt – and has captained his country – while Chamberlain, 20, will be making only his second start in just his fourth pro game.
“Nathan’s a quality player,” said 31- year- old Pyrgos. “He’s a really good thinker and a good student of the game.
“It’s important if the guy hasn’t had that many games that you don’t want him to have to be thinking about too much stuff.
“You just have to help him go out and do his job, do the basics a well as he can.
“There’ s always that expectation on the guy who has a little bit more experience to help drive the team, and let him concentrate on his basics.
“Nathan’s obviously young, but he’s a really good individual player. So it’s up to me – as the guy who’s got a little bit more experience – just to work with him and, hopefully, we can put the team in the right areas.”