CHRIS Dean got himself on the scoresheet as Edinburgh got their season off to a winning start in Cardiff last weekend but he took even more satisfaction from being part of a defensive unit that restricted the home side to a single try, writes Kevin Ferrie.
It was a potentially significant victory not just because it was achieved against what has been something of a bogey team against whom Edinburgh had won only twice in the previous seven years, but because of the way it was achieved. That, in turn, has the potential to breed confidence in the methods being applied by the new regime under head coach Richard Cockerill, as was evident in the credit Dean attributed to new defence coach Calum MacRae who had previously built his reputation with the Scotland sevens squad.
“I think what Calum MacRae has brought in is a real good defensive set-up initially,” said the 23-year-old centre who is a product of the sevens system, spending two years with them before joining Edinburgh full time last year. “There is better emphasis about getting up there in the face of the ball carrier and making them make their decision earlier which makes it easier for us to defend against. It has certainly started making life easier in the wider channels.”
It has been, Dean suggested, a case of providing clarity in terms of what is required.
“We all know our roles pretty well and have worked hard in pre-season on it with the big guys in the middle doing the hard work and making our job easier,” he explained.
They still failed to take full advantage of all the opportunities they created on Saturday, however Dean’s second half try was enough to take Edinburgh clear at a crucial stage of Saturday’s encounter which seemed telling given their track record which suggested they might have been expected to wilt after their hosts had come back from their initial 10 point deficit to level the scores.
“It is always enjoyable to score a try, but obviously it is the win that really matters to us,” he said. “Perhaps in that 10-10 scenario we maybe would have thrown it away last year, but I think this year we know that we have done the hard work and we have that mental edge that managed to get us through with a win.
“There is a real feeling, a real belief that we have got it in the tank and I think collectively we believe we can win. There was no point in the game where I thought ‘we are going to lose this’, but last year potentially we might have thought ‘this could go the wrong way or get a bit hectic’. So, steps in the right direction, but feet firmly on the ground.”
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