Glasgow Warriors head coach Gregor Townsend admitted he was handed a welcome selection headache as he looks to strike the first blow against Scottish rivals Edinburgh. Townsend and co welcome Edinburgh in fine form, having lost just one of their last four GUINNESS PRO12 encounters. Yet it was the latest victory over Munster that has meant Townsend has had some tough choices to make for the visit of Edinburgh, having watched his team fight back in the second-half for a 21-18 victory. Captain Al Kellock returns to the Glasgow Warriors starting XV for his 147th appearance, while in the back-line Stuart Hogg returns from injury and replaces Peter Murchie at full-back, with fit-again Alex Dunbar coming in for Richie Vernon at outside centre. Peter Horne continues at inside centre, Duncan Weir replaces Finn Russell at stand-off and Henry Pyrgos starts ahead of Niko Matawalu at scrum-half. Sean Lamont and DTH van der Merwe are once again named on either wing, with Lamont set to make his 100th PRO12 appearance on Saturday. Ryan Grant and Pat MacArthur come in for Gordon Reid and Fraser Brown at loose-head and hooker respectively, while Euan Murray continues at tighthead. In the second-row Kellock replaces Leone Nakarawa and Tim Swinson comes in for Jonny Gray. Rob Harley once again moves to the openside, with Ryan Wilson coming in at blindside flanker and Josh Strauss continuing at No.8. Former Edinburgh players Dougie Hall and Alex Allan are named amongst the replacements, while Sean Maitland is also named on the bench, after recovering from injury. Townsend said: "It's encouraging that a number of our players have come back from injury and we have a bigger squad to select from this week. "This is the game every player wants to play in and there has been a real edge to training. "It was a really difficult team to select with the second half performance against Munster and the impact the bench made, in addition to a number of players coming back from injury. It's a case of rewarding those who are in form and finding the right combinations for this weekend's opponents. "We have gone with the same wingers this week after Sean (Lamont) and DTH (van der Merwe) played well against Munster. "Al (Kellock) has been working really hard and has been very consistent with his training. He has been heavily involved in preparing for this game and his participation in the 'A' fixture on Monday was of real benefit to him to prepare for this match. "Both our second-rows played well last week, but it's a very competitive position, so it's great that Al and Tim (Swinson) get an opportunity tomorrow. "We know we face an extremely tough test against an in-form Edinburgh side, but all the players are really looking forward to this derby match." Glasgow Warriors have won their last 13 GUINNESS PRO12 matches at Scotstoun since Dragons won there in November 2013, and they have lost only one of their last ten encounters with Edinburgh. In fact, the Warriors have held on to the 1872 Cup since winning it in season 2009/10 as Edinburgh have lost on both their previous visits to Scotstoun. In an attempt to get their hands back on the cup though Edinburgh head coach Alan Solomons has made three changes to the starting XV that beat Treviso 48-0 last time out. Winger Tom Brown comes in to the starting XV as Tim Visser is rested. In the pack, Ross Ford returns from injury as well as Anton Bresler who has recovered from the ear infection that kept him out of the Treviso match. Meanwhile, another of the casualties of Edinburgh's October European Cup win over Lyon, Phil Burleigh, returns to the 23 where he's named on the bench. Retaining his berth from last week, Dougie Fife will lead the team out as he celebrates his 50th cap for the club. Solomons said: "The 1872 Cup fixture is rich in history and tradition. We all appreciate the privilege of being involved in such a match and are determined to do justice to the occasion.” At Scotstoun Stadium, 2.40pm Live on Sky Sports Referee: George Clancy (IRFU, 64th competition game) Assistant Referees: David Changleng, Bob Nevins (both SRU) Citing Commissioner: Douglas Hunter (SRU) TMO: Iain Ramage (SRU)
