Capital side grab first away victory with an Italian job
ZEBRE 19 EDINBURGH 38
Edinburgh were without 10 of their Scotland internationals for the trip to Parma yesterday.
But you would never have guessed it from the way in which they tore the Zebre defence to shreds in the first half at the Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi.
Mike Blair’s team had the try bonus point in the bag well before the break, and added two more in the second half to make it six touchdowns in total.
Zebre looked a pale shadow of the side that had run the Sharks and Leinster close in their first two outings in this season’s URC, and they were hampered by the first-half sending-off of MJ Pelser for a shoulder-to-head contact off the ball on Nick Haining.
But they were already 19-0 down by the time they were reduced to 14 men, and would have lost a lot more heavily if they had not slowed the game down as much as possible.
It was a first win of the league on the road for the capital club, and head coach Blair was thoroughly satisfied with the way his players went about their business straight from kick-off.
“I thought that when we were on it today we were really good,” he said.
“This was a Zebre team who have scored a lot of tries at home and who have been an improving team over the last six months.
“To come away with the number of guys we didn’t have available was really impressive.
“After half-time the game was so stop-start. I don’t know how you stop that. It seemed that the Zebre front row went down at any opportunity.
I don’t know if they were struggling or if it was a tactic.
“On top of the four water breaks you have in a game, it slows everything down and probably reduces it as a spectacle.”
It certainly did but, over the piece, the first half more than compensated for the shortcomings of the second.
Edinburgh took no more than a few minutes to get into their stride, and once they did they were soon on the scoresheet, with hooker Adam McBurney breaking free after a Henry Immelman break.
Jamie Hodgson got the second try from a maul, and then Wes Goosen celebrated his debut by claiming the third from a Matt Currie pass.
When McBurney got his own second and his team’s fourth from a maul after a penalty had been sent to touch, the game was as good as over.
Emiliano Boffelli, who converted three of the four tries, was sinbinned right before the break for a team offence. Edinburgh stayed on top early in the second half, and Immelman got their fifth try.
Zebre finally came into the game after that, scoring through Alessandro Fusco from a tap penalty and then Luca Rizzoli from close range.
Currie added a sixth try for the Scots, converted by substitute Charlie Savala, before Jacopo Trulla had the last word for the home side with their third try.
Geronimo Prisciantelli converted two of his team’s three tries to lend some respectability to the final score, but it was a solid victory for Edinburgh all the same.
“It was great that Wes got his first game for the club,” Blair said of summer signing Goosen.
“He has been pretty frustrated with the start of his season with his niggling injuries, but I thought he did some really positive stuff.”