gunners shoot down the exiles
LONDON IRISH 14 EDINBURGH 37
Junior Rasolea made up for lost time by propelling Edinburgh to Euro glory.
The bustling centre bagged two touchdowns in quick succession at the Madejski Stadium to sink the exiles and set up the ideal start to the Challenge Cup campaign.
It was his first appearance since being sidelined by injury at the start of the season.
The hosts had edged in front with a tricky penalty by Theo Brophy Clewes.
But after a spell of midfield sparring the response of the Gunners was lethal. Clever work from Jason Tovey created the time and space for Damien Hoyland to burst through and reach the line.
Tovey slotted the extras to provide a further confidence boost.
Tovey was in the spotlight again as slick passing resulted in Resolea bagging try No. 2.
The frantic action continued with Ollie Hoskins darting over for a London Irish counter – only for Brophy Clewes to make a hash of the easy conversion.
Gunners immediately hit back with a penalty by Sam HidalgoClyne in the wake of a strong run from Glenn Bryce.
Rasolea then burst his way back into the contest to complete his double – only to see Brophy Clewes claw back three points on the brink of the interval.
He repeated the feat early in the second half to slash the gap to just six points – however, Hidalgo-Clyne restored the Edinburgh advantage.
Gunners had to withstand a spell of heavy pressure before making wholesale changes.
Any chance of a late home fightback was dashed as James Ritchie pounced to make sure of the full haul of points. Youngster Luke Crosbie added another – both goaled by Hidalgo-Clyne to round off the rout.