Bennett impressed by ‘cracking’ stadium
Edinburgh will play their first match in their new stadium on Friday night when Newcastle Falcons are the visitors, and Mark Bennett is confident that the 7,800-capacity ground will be a big success.
Yesterday, the team’s supporters got their first glimpse of the venue, which is just outside the National Stadium at Murrayfield and is to be known, accurately if not imaginatively, as the Edinburgh Rugby Stadium.
The presence of fans gave Bennett and his team-mates an idea of what the place will be like on match days, and the centre was encouraged by what he saw.
“We’re hoping it’ll be near enough full for some of the games over the next few weeks, so I think it’ll be a cracking atmosphere in the place,” he said.
“It’s the perfect size for us and it’s an exciting time.”
The synthetic pitch should be ideally suited not only to the fastest players in the squad such as Bennett, but also to the attacking style of rugby that Edinburgh are aiming to play under new head coach Mike Blair.
“I love it,” Bennett added. “It’s quick and the atmosphere will be nice in there. It was nice having fans in there today and actually having a wee sneak peek of what it’s going to be like.
“The pitch is brilliant. We’ve been training on it for a little while now and we’re getting used to it.”
The Falcons beat Glasgow 12-7 on Friday night at Scotstoun, despite not fielding a full-strength side. They are expected to go with their strongest selection this Friday, but that will not faze Bennett.
“I saw the score, but that’s all, so I don’t know what they’re going to be like,” he added. “We’re just focusing on what we’ve got.
“It’s pre-season and we’re trying to change some things and put in place what we’re trying to do.”