Glasgow v Edinburgh: Both coaches make five changes to their teams for 1872 Cup clash

Glasgow and Edinburgh have both made five changes to their starting Xvs ahead of Friday night’s 1872 Cup clash at Scotstoun, with Blair Kinghorn and Stuart McInally both missing out for the visitors.

Scotland wing Duhan van der Merwe is fit again for Edinburgh after a late withdrawal through injury against Castres last Saturday and comes in ahead of Damien Hoyland. Charlie Savala starts at stand-off as Kinghorn misses out through injury. With Matt Currie picking up a knock against Castres, James Lang switches to outside centre, allowing Chris Dean to return to the starting XV at 12.

Tom Cruse – who played nearly 78 minutes in the victory over Castres – will make his first start at hooker in place of McInally, who remains in the graduated return to play protocol. In the back-row, academy graduate Connor Boyle starts at openside flanker in place of Luke Crosbie, meaning co-captain Jamie Ritchie switches to the blindside in an otherwise unchanged back-row with Fijian number 8 Viliame Mata completing the pack. Argentine star Emilliano Boffelli continues at full-back, with Wes Goosen and Van der Merwe on opposite wings. Scrum-half Ben Vellacott – who this week signed a new deal with the club – is paired with Savala paired at half-back.

Glasgow captain Kyle Steyn returns to the starting XV on the wing. Glasgow head coach Franco Smith has also brought Fraser Brown at hooker, while Sintu Manjezi is promoted to the starting XV at lock, the South African joining Richie Gray in the engine room. Behind the scrum, Tom Jordan comes into the side to start at number 10, partnering George Horne in the half-backs. Stafford McDowall and Sione Tuipulotu combine in the midfield, the former coming into the squad after missing out on last weekend’s bonus-point victory over Perpignan in the EPCR Challenge Cup.

Glasgow Warriors No9 George Horne and Edinburgh scrum-half Ben Vellacott will compete for the 1872 Cup at Scotstoun on Friday night. Picture: Ross Parker / SNS

Edinburgh are holders of the 1872 Cup trophy, which this week was replenished to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the fixture. The match, on course to be a sellout, takes place exactly 150 years and one month from the first-ever meeting between the two cities at Burbank Park, Glasgow, on 23 November 1872.

“For the players, it’s absolutely brilliant to be involved in such a historic fixture for both clubs,” said Blair. “This is a derby that has stood the test of time and we’re proud to celebrate 150 years of rugby rivalry in a match-up that is a cornerstone of Scottish rugby history.“There has been a brilliant buzz around training this week, which you’d expect in the build-up to a derby, and I’ve been really impressed with the squad’s attitude and work rate after a strong win against Castres last weekend. Derbies are brilliant games to be part of and we’re hugely excited.”

How they line up

Match details: Glasgow Warriors v Edinburgh Rugby at Scotstoun Stadium in the BKT United Rugby Championship, Friday 23 December (kick-off 7.35pm) – live on Viaplay, Premier Sports, SuperSport and Discovery. Referee: Ben Blain (SRU, 28th league game). AR 1: Hollie Davidson (SRU) AR 2: Sam Grove-White (SRU). TMO: Mike Adamson (SRU)

Edinburgh team: 15 Emiliano Boffelli (24 appearances); 14 Wes Goosen (6), 13 James Lang (18), 12 Chris Dean (130), 11 Duhan van der Merwe (70); 10 Charlie Savala (20), 9 Ben Vellacott (28); 1 Pierre Schoeman (91), 2 Tom Cruse (2), 3 WP Nel (180), 4 Glen Young (17), 5 Grant Gilchrist (182), 6 Jamie Ritchie (91), 7 Connor Boyle (25), 8 Viliame Mata (104). Replacements 16 Patrick Harrison (8), 17 Boan Venter (36), 18 Angus Williams (17), 19 Marshall Sykes (31), 20 Ben Muncaster (24), 21 Henry Pyrgos (77), 22 Jaco van der Walt (92), 23 Cammy Scott (1).

Glasgow Warriors team: 15 Josh McKay (20); 14 Sebastian Cancelliere (17), 13 Sione Tuipulotu (27), 12 Stafford McDowall (44), 11 Kyle Steyn (C) (55); 10 Tom Jordan (9), 9 George Horne (89); 1 Jamie Bhatti (76), 2 Fraser Brown (130), 3 Murphy Walker (11), 4 Sintu Manjezi (10), 5 Richie Gray (91), 6 Matt Fagerson (84), 7 Sione Vailanu (5), 8 Jack Dempsey (27). Replacements: 16 George Turner (84), 17 Nathan McBeth (10), 18 Simon Berghan (18), 19 JP du Preez (9), 20 Lewis Bean (24), 21 Cameron Neild (1), 22 Ali Price (117), 23 Domingo Miotti (12).