Watson excited by challenge the new season has in store
Having spent six weeks immersed in South African rugby whilst on tour with the British & Irish Lions this summer, Hamish Watson reckons he has a fair idea of what to expect when the new look United Rugby Championship kicks-off next weekend.
The introduction of the Bulls, Sharks, Stormers and Lions to the competition – previously called the PRO14 – means an even tougher challenge than before for teams such as Watson’s Edinburgh.
But it is a challenge which excites the openside flanker, and he believes that the return of spectators to grounds will be another energising factor for teams who have played out the majority of matches over the past 18 months in front of empty stands.
“To have four of the best South African teams in the URC will be great,” said Watson.
He took a break after the Lions tour and has just begun his pre-season training, meaning he was not involved in his team’s friendly against Benetton yesterday, and will also miss next Saturday’s URC season-opener away to Scarlets.
“As long as Covid restrictions continue to be eased, we’ll have fans in the stadium, which will be awesome for players,” he added.
“Some of the young boys haven’t played in front of crowds before, and I haven’t played in front of crowds for a year and a half.
“So this is a great time for the fans to come back and to watch South African teams – it’s really exciting.”
Watson admitted that he had mixed emotions following the Lions tour.
He said it was a great honour to be involved and he managed to pick up a Test cap when he came off the bench in the first of the three matches the tourists played against the world champion Springboks.
But he was left as a frustrated onlooker during the second and third Tests as the Lions slumped to a series defeat.
“I’d be lying if I said I came back really happy,” he admitted. “I was frustrated in the last two weeks. I think everyone has a desire to be starting and playing every week, and I’m not just going to settle for getting one Test appearance.
“But I can also think, without talking myself up, that I had a good few years leading up to it. I think I did everything I could have done to try and gain a starting spot.
“Sometimes coaches just go for different players and that’s just the way it is.”
Meanwhile, Al Dickinson reckons the addition of four South African sides to the URC this coming season means that he is going to have his work cut out in his new role as scrum coach for Glasgow Warriors.
The former Scotland prop returned north of the Border this summer following a rewarding 2020-21 season helping Bristol Bears finish top of the English Premiership table, before losing out to Harlequins in the play-offs.
“South African teams pride themselves on having a good setpiece, so it is a great challenge for us to go up against these teams, to see where we are at and to have a real go,” he explained.
“The knock-on effect of having a poor scrum is massive, as everyone knows.
“In games where scrums are evenly matched, people don’t really see a huge amount of outcome from that.
“But when you see a team with a really dominant scrum – like South Africa winning the World Cup Final against England – it can certainly set the trajectory of the performance and leave the other team clutching at straws.
“These days, it is difficult to referee it properly, and there can be a lot of 50-50 calls, so you really have to get detailed and understand what you are trying to coach and make sure that the players understand.”
Dickinson added that he has high hopes that this will be a big year for emerging props Tom Lambert and Murphy Walker.
He said: “I think they are definitely part of the future for Scotland.”