'Hand on heart': New Edinburgh Rugby coach makes confession after one week of pre-season training
Davis runs rule over players as they bid to impress coaching staff
New Edinburgh Rugby coach Brad Davis has urged Edinburgh's players to maintain their impressive pre-season levels after being bowled over by their early work ahead of the 2026/27 campaign.
Many of the capital club returned for pre-season training earlier this month, with players involved with Scotland’s Under-20s and the Nations Championships given extended time off. It has allowed freshly-appointed defence specialist Davis, who has had spells with Bath, Ospreys and Queensland Reds, to cast his eye over some of the squad after arriving from his native Australia.
Edinburgh failed to reach the United Rugby Championship play-offs last term and know the importance a far more consistent and fruitful campaign. And Davis, 58, has expressed his satisfaction with the start the players have made to training.
‘Clearly enough talent in the room’ - Path to success there for Edinburgh players
“Working with the players we have in the last week, hand on heart - and I’ve been coaching for 19 to 20 seasons now - I haven't seen a club or a group of players hit the ground running as quickly as I’ve seen this week,” said Davis. “I think the key to it is how we can sustain that.
“How we can not get bored with doing the right things at the right time on the rugby field? I think that comes from our training ground at work.
“From the first week and even the start of this week, everything that we’ve put in front of the players as a coaching group, they’ve attacked, and haven’t backed away from it whatsoever. I said to the guys at a meeting yesterday, there’s clearly enough talent in the room.
“It’s a really, really exciting group of experienced players and young players coming through, and it’s about us harnessing that and doing the right things out on the training field on a consistent basis for us to be able to get transfer on to the rugby field. That doesn’t determine whether you win rugby games but, in my experience, it puts you into the frame to win rugby games and that’s the first things that we’re looking at in this block.”
On moving to Edinburgh and what drew him to the Hive, the Australian added: “It’s one of the greatest cities in the world, isn’t it? Full of history.
“I spent the first week in Edinburgh with my family and my young son. And then last week we found a place in North Berwick to settle in. It’s a lovely spot as well.
“So, brilliant first impressions of the city. Great club, historic club. We had our first full week last week and I’m really impressed, especially with the plan moving forward, with the club, with the recruitment of the new staff and us being able to gel together. It’s been really exciting.
“Then seeing the ambition of the players and their appetite for work on the training field has been very impressive. I feel for me as a coach being able to come into an organisation with such a huge pedigree and with the support it has from the SRU and with the movement into the Hive, there’s a massive opportunity to help improve things and put Edinburgh more on the map in terms of actually achieving immediate success and also long-term success.”
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