Darcy Graham and Duhan van der Merwe ruled out of Edinburgh game as Scotland Test series looms

Graham aggravated an old knee injury during the big win over Benetton last Friday. He stayed on the field for the full match despite receiving treatment on three separate occasions. However, he will play no part against Cardiff.

Neither will Van der Merwe, who came off early in the second half against Benetton with a bruised heel. He was originally named in the Edinburgh team for Saturday but then withdrew, with the heel issue continuing to trouble him.

Scotland open their autumn programme against the USA at Murrayfield on November 1 and then play New Zealand, Argentina and Tonga in Edinburgh over consecutive weekends.

Recurrence of a previous injury

“Duhan's got a bruise on his heel, which he's not comfortable with,” said Everitt. “He's just not comfortable running with it, so we don't want to risk him playing this weekend with what he's got ahead of him in November. He's available for November.”

Regarding Graham, Everitt said it was a recurrence of a previous medial collateral ligament issue. “Darcy aggravated an old injury and he's also available for November,” said the Edinburgh coach. “Obviously he's not comfortable this week.

“We don't want to risk him now with the games that they have in November. Those are really important for Scotland. On top of that, it's a long season and we've got 11 weeks in a row to contend with heading into January. So, I'd rather him be fit, especially with what he's gone through as well.”

Graham has been dogged by injury in recent seasons, most recently on the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia in the summer when he had to come off 15 minutes into his debut against the First Nations and Pasifika XV in Melbourne due to an ankle problem.

The irrepressible Graham managed to score a try during his short time on the field in Melbourne and also bagged a double in the 43-0 win over Benetton last week, despite the knee injury. Van der Merwe also opened his account for the season against the Italian side but won’t travel to Wales. Lewis Wells takes his place on the left wing, with Ross McCann coming in for Graham on the right.

No frustration: opportunity for others

Everitt denied there was any sense of frustration in not having his star wingers available, with the needs of the national side taking priority. “No, not at all. I mean, we've got to look after all the individuals and their well-being,” said Everitt. “I think if you look at Ross McCann and how well he played when he came on [against Benetton], for me it's a good opportunity for Ross

“I've got to look at it that way - that we're giving the extended squad some experience as well. And we're going to need them when we come back [from the international break] at the end of November.

“I presume that Duhan and Darcy will be involved in most of the Test matches in November, depending on how Gregor [Townsend] manages them, and obviously, we would need to probably rest them in the Ospreys game [on November 29] because there's a long December and January coming up.

“I think it's just great that we're able to give these guys that haven't had much game-time in this block an opportunity.”

Wells played twice for Edinburgh last season and offers a powerful threat. “It was an easy switch for him to come straight in for Duhan,” added Everitt. “He's comfortable on the left wing. I think the last game that he played on the left wing was against Scarlets and he was really good, so a great opportunity for him to put his hand up.”

“He's a massive player, big, well-built, strong, and he adds speed to that as well. He's improved under the high-ball. He's good at high-ball regain and he's shown that in the pre-season warm-up games, so I'm very happy to give him a start.”

The win over Benetton kick-started Edinburgh’s season and Everitt will be looking to maintain the momentum at Cardiff Arms Park. The coach has stuck with Charlie Shiel and Cammy Scott at nine and ten, a show of faith in the halfbacks who did well together last week.

Aside from the wingers, the only other change to the XV is in the second row where Marshall Sykes returns in place of Sam Skinner. Matt Davidson, the GB Sevens internationalist, is on the bench and in line for his Edinburgh debut.

How Edinburgh will line up at Cardiff Arms Park

Cardiff v Edinburgh (URC round 5, Cardiff Arms Park, Saturday, 7.45pm)

Edinburgh: Wes Goosen; Ross McCann, Piers O’Conor, James Lang, Lewis Wells; Cammy Scott, Charlie Shiel; Pierre Schoeman, Ewan Ashman, D’arcy Rae, Marshall Sykes, Grant Gilchrist, Liam McConnell, Dylan Richardson, Magnus Bradbury (capt). Replacements: Paddy Harrison, Boan Venter, Paul Hill, Callum Hunter-Hill, Luke Crosbie, Ben Vellacott, Ross Thompson, Matt Davidson.