Edinburgh v Ulster: Teams
Edinburgh head coach Rob Moffat is refusing to take anything for granted when his side take on Ulster at Murrayfield.
Last Updated: 15/10/09 8:18am
Edinburgh head coach Rob Moffat is refusing to take anything for granted when his side take on Ulster at Murrayfield.
Edinburgh have already beaten Ulster at Ravenhill in the Magners League this season and boast an impressive record against Brian McLaughlin's side.
However Ulster will arrive at Murrayfield full of confidence after winning three games on the bounce - included a 26-12 victory over Bath in the opening round of Heineken Cup games.
And Moffat knows his side will face a tough 80 minutes of action.
"It is a massive challenge. Since we beat them at Ravenhill, they have won against Connacht, Scarlets and against Bath in the Heineken Cup - they are on song just now," he said.
"I don't believe our recent record against Ulster will affect the outcome of Saturday's match. This is a different game and they are on form right now.
"We have to perform to the high standards that we have set. Everyone knows the importance of the game and it is all about regaining the consistency levels which helped us to finish second in the Magners League last season.
Delighted
"We have learned that you cannot afford to give quality teams a big head-start - we've got to make the opposition fight for every point they get."
Moffat has made three changes following the heavy defeat to Stade Francais, with Scotland internationals Allan Jacobsen and Ben Cairns and lock Craig Hamilton all dropped.
That means Nick De Luca, Kyle Traynor and Steve Turnbull, who will make his first Heineken Cup start for the club, all get their chance to shine.
Ulster coach McLaughlin insists his side need to build on their win over Bath if they are to maintain their impressive run of form.
McLaughlin said: "We gained a great result against Bath last week. But while we are delighted with it, we can't dwell on it.
"Now we have to move on and perform at Murrayfield, against a very powerful side. We must and will remain focused, because if we get carried away with ourselves we'll under-achieve.
"This is a young squad and we still have a lot to learn. There's a long way to go."
Edinburgh: 15 Chris Paterson, 14 Mark Robertson, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 John Houston, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Phil Godman, 9 Mike Blair (capt), 8 Allister Hogg, 7 Roddy Grant, 6 Alan MacDonald, 5 Scott MacLeod, 4 Steve Turnbull, 3 Geoff Cross, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Kyle Traynor.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Kelly, 17 Allan Jacobsen, 18 David Young, 19 Craig Hamilton, 20 Scott Newlands, 21 Greig Laidlaw, 22 Ben Cairns, 23 Steve Jones.
Ulster (from): Nigel Brady, Brendon Botha, Ryan Caldwell, Tom Court, Bryan Young, Ed O'Donoghue, Stephen Ferris, Andy Kyriacou, Dan Tuohy, Robbie Diack, Chris Henry, Willie Faloon, Tamaiti Horua, Declan Fitzpatrick, Timoci Nagusa, Darren Cave, Niall O'Connor, Simon Danielli, Ian Whitten, Paddy Wallace, Paul Marshall, Isaac Boss, Andrew Trimble, Ian Humphreys, Clinton Schifcofske.