Glasgow Warriors coach Gregor Townsend insists previous records against Edinburgh Rugby will count for nothing in this year’s RaboDirect PRO12 derby clash double header, but would love a victory to reignite their season. The Warriors hold the upper hand over the Edinburgh counterparts having won the 1872 Cup game eight times since 2008, with their opponent’s only victory coming at Murrayfield in January 2011. And Townsend’s men will travel to Murrayfield once again on Boxing Day, with a new club away record in their back pockets following their five successive victories on the road in the RaboDirect PRO12 season. But it is their home form that is hampering their chances this season, with three successive losses at Scotstoun in all competitions. With last Friday’s home match with Benetton Treviso also having been postponed due to a waterlogged pitch, the Warriors dropped down to fifth in the RaboDirect PRO12. And looking to move back up the table, Townsend has rung the changes, especially in midfield with Stuart Hogg starting at outside centre, partnering Alex Dunbar. Sean Maitland starts at full-back while Duncan Weir has been named at fly-half with Chris Cusiter captaining the side at No.9 in the absence of Al Kellock. Ryan Grant returns at loose-head with back-row Rob Harley also coming back into the team for a game Townsend was relishing getting stuck into. “This game is massive for the players. These are the best games of the season in terms of crowd numbers,” he told the Glasgow Warriors official website. “It is the oldest club game in the world so there is a lot of history. It is a huge privilege to play in a fixture like this. “It is an opportunity for players to do well individually, but more importantly to do well for the club. “Last year these fixtures really helped us to move up the table, but we know how tough it will be to win, especially after seeing Edinburgh’s results over the last few weeks.” “It is obviously in the subconscious that we won at Murrayfield last year, but Edinburgh are different now, and probably more confident than they were a year ago. This is a new game.” While Glasgow Warriors’ form in recent weeks have been mixed, opponents Edinburgh have been on the charge, with their only defeat in their last five RaboDirect PRO12 encounters coming in round 8 against Ulster. Last week saw them pick up a 11-6 win over Leinster with coach Alan Solomons opting to stick largely with the same side, loosehead prop Wicus Blaauw the only change, coming in for Alasdair Dickinson. And Greig Laidlaw, who featured heavily on his return to the side against Ulster, insists the squad remains confident they can turn the tables on their Scottish counterparts. “We can control what’s in our four walls and if we get our part right we’ll put ourselves in with the best possible chance of coming away with the points,” Laidlaw told The Scotsman. “Confidence is building at the right time after a good win down the road at Gloucester and a good win here against arguably the best team in Europe [Leinster]. “They rested a couple of players, but you can only beat who’s in front of you and we did that, and we’re confident at the moment. “All credit to Glasgow; they’ve been on top the last few years but we’re going out there to reverse that this year.” At Murrayfield, 3.05pm. Live on BBC ALBA Referee: Neil Paterson (SRU, 57th competition game) Assistant Referees: David Changleng, Bob Nevins (both SRU) Citing Commissioner: John Cole (SRU) TMO: Jim Yuille (SRU)
