THE GOOD, THE BRAD &THE UGLY
Magnus says any win is beautiful to him
MAGNUS BRADBURY insisted he didn’t care how bad Edinburgh’s 1872 Cup victory over Glasgow Warriors looked as long as they won.
The 25-year-old breakaway forward had a ringside seat for the first 67 minutes of a contest which will go down as one of the most uninspired games ever at Murrayfield.
The deadlock was only broken with 15 minutes to go when Gunners stand-off Jaco van der Walt fired home a superb long-range penalty.
Bradbury’s try just after coming on sealed the win before Lewis Bean picked up a consolation score for the visitors.
It wasn’t pretty but Bradbury says his team will take confidence from having ground out the 10-7 victory.
He said: “There was aspects of this match which were good but a lot of that game wasn’t perfect so we’ll look at it on Monday and see what we can improve going forward.
“A win is a win – that’s what we always say at the end of the day – so we’re quite happy.”
Bradbury’s try came after a Warriors mix-up in midfield allowed van der Walt to hack ahead.
There were four Edinburgh players lining up to flop on the ball as it bounced over the line but the big No8 insisted there was no chance of any of his team-mates getting in ahead of him. It was his first try for the club since February 2019 and he wasn’t in the mood for sharing.
Bradbury said: “It was tunnel vision for me – that was my first one in a while so I was taking it.
“The coaches just said to me to bring some energy when I come on and I ended up in the right slot, so it’s all good.”
Bradbury admitted he was frustrated at being dropped to the bench for this match after playing a key role in helping Edinburgh claim an impressive Champions Cup win at Sale Sharks last time out. He
TRYING TIMES Bradbury pounces to score believes the intense competition for places in Edinburgh’s back row is driving up standards, which will be key to a strong end of season for the capital outfit.
Bradbury is competing against Jamie Ritchie and Hamish Watson, Scotland’s current first-choice flankers, as well as Fijian powerhouse Bill Mata for a starting slot.
He said: “I’m pretty experienced now. It is not the first time I have been dropped – and I’m sure it won’t be the last.
“But I had a good, constructive chat with Cockers [head coach Richard Cockerill] about it last week.
“He said there will be chances and he suggested to me that I take my opportunity when it comes.
“We know how good the back row i but I feel like when I play my best game, I can be part of that as well, so it’s not about me being down in the dumps.
“It is annoying to be dropped but I want to be back in the team so it is how I react to that – and that is what Cockers has said to me going forward.
“It is about training well and when I get that chance, delivering if I can.
“If somebody has a bad game I will be asking: ‘Why am I not starting now?’
“So that door is never shut for anyone and I feel like Cockers is quite good at picking guys on form.
“I’m happy to take it one week at a time and see what the team is for next week.”