Getting to heart of the Mata.. losing Bill is big blow
Blair’s men are facing three key clashes without Fiji star
BILL MATA faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines because of the knee injury he picked up in Edinburgh’s win over Benetton last week.
The club will release a statement today revealing exactly how long they expect the Fijian forward to be out for.
But boss Mike Blair confirmed yesterday Mata – who left the DAM Health Stadium on crutches after the Benetton game – has no chance of playing in Saturday’s Challenge Cup match against Saracens or in the two games against Glasgow over Christmas and New Year.
Scotland winger Damien Hoyland will also miss those three matches after he too damaged a knee in the URC win over the Italians.
But stand-off Blair Kinghorn could be back to line up against the former European champions in London as he is making good progress after going off with a head injury in the second half of the Benetton match.
Mata has been a key player for Edinburgh since joining five years ago.
Former manager Richard Cockerill once joked he would sell one of his own children’s kidneys if he had to raise funds to help keep him at the club.
And although the squad includes a lot of talented back-row forwards, new boss Blair admitted losing the fans’ favourite for the Saracens game is still a tough one to take.
He said: “Not the best of news. Hopefully it’s an injury that will heal up nice and quickly but it wasn’t looking good.
“We had a five-metre scrum and he picked up and just got caught at an awkward angle.
“Nothing malicious. It’s a big blow for Bill himself. It’s a big blow for the club.
“But it gives other guys the chance. We’re pretty fortunate with the coverage we’ve got in the back row, so we’ll give another player an opportunity to grasp that jersey.”
In-form Magnus Bradbury is likely to take over from Mata in Blair’s starting line-up.
Argentinian winger Ramiro Moyano could come in for Hoyland and if Kinghorn is not passed fit, Jaco van der Walt will be available after injury.
Blair knows Saracens will be a test for his team. He added: “They’ll be a physical challenge. They’re one of the top teams in Europe, so it will be good to find out where we’re at.”
Meanwhile Jordan Venter, 19, has left Edinburgh to join Bath. The South African centre arrived a year ago but didn’t make any competitive appearances.