I hated not having crowds in.. it’s almost pointless playing
Darcy dubs games without fans a waste of time as restrictions return in time for derby
DARCY GRAHAM has questioned whether games should be played at all until the Covid restrictions are eased.
Moving matches won’t be easy given the fixture congestion which already exists in professional rugby.
But as far as Edinburgh winger Graham is concerned, games without fans are a waste of time.
The Scotland star said: “It’s huge having the support there, that’s why we play rugby, so we can play in front of fans.
“I did not enjoy playing without any crowds before.
“I hated it and it’s not the same, it’s almost pointless playing. To have them taken away again is pretty disappointing. I thought we were past that stage and we had overcome it, but obviously not.
“It’s very difficult times we’re in just now and everybody’s a bit fed up with it and just wants life to go back to normal.
“But for the time being it is what it is and we’re going to have to get on with it.”
Graham knows he must find a way to motivate himself over the next two weeks, with two huge 1872 Cup matches against archrivals Glasgow Warriors coming up.
First up is a trip to Scotstoun on Monday followed by a home contest six days later.
Graham said: “It’s been so long since we’ve had a derby game that people can come and watch, so I think people were getting their hopes up about these games, especially given the form both teams have been in recently.
“It was going to be a chance to watch the top Scottish boys going headto-head so I think the fans will be really disappointed.
“But for us as players things don’t change.
“We’ve still got a game on Monday which we have to prep well for.
“We’re doing really well in the league and it’s another game we have to win.
“We’ve had a really good start to the season and it’s about building on that.
“The games we’ve played are past now and it’s about looking forward.
“We’ve got a huge block of league games coming up against Glasgow back-toback, Cardiff Blues and then Ospreys, going into the international break.
“Those four games are massive and we need as many points as we can to put us on good footing as we push for the play-offs in the rest of the season.
“Glasgow struggled at the start of the season, but they’ve really built into it and played some really good rugby to put in a complete performance which put Exeter to the sword last weekend.
“We know we’re going to have to be on our game, especially going away to
Scotstoun. It’s a very difficult place to go and we’re going to have to bring our best game to the table to beat them.”
Scotland centre Nick Grigg will leave Warriors at the end of this year after agreeing an early release from his contract so that he can join Japanese side NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes.
The 29-year-old is initially from New Zealand but has a grandfather from Ayrshire, which enabled him to pick up nine caps for Scotland.
He said: “I’ll be closer to home and my family, and I get to experience a new culture. I’m going to miss Glasgow, the fans and the boys, but it’s going to be an amazing experience.”