A strange air of secrecy was generated by Edinburgh yesterday as Ross Rennie took a self-imposed vow of silence after being brought back into the side.
The international flanker had missed his side's last outing with Wasps after being suspended for a dangerous tackle during the meeting of the same sides a week earlier.
Like Sean Lineen, his Glasgow Warriors counterpart, Andy Robinson, Edinburgh's head coach, has made four changes for Friday's derby.
Ross Ford has recovered from a rib sprain, Gav Kerr comes in because Geoff Cross is doubtful due to a calf injury and John Houston replaces Mark Robertson, who also has a calf problem. However, it is a measure of Rennie's standing that he has been brought straight back in.
The flanker refused to give interviews, with officials first suggesting there had been some doubt about whether he would be available to play, then saying he was choosing not to speak because he wanted to focus on the game, before adding that a full explanation for his silence would be offered after the match.
It would be easy to jump to the conclusion that Rennie remains embarrassed about an incident that effectively killed off his team's chances in Europe this season.
Edinburgh had come back from a nine-point deficit to lead Wasps at Murrayfield when that tackle on Paul Sackey saw him sin-binned for all bar the last few seconds of the match. The resultant penalty let Wasps regain the lead and against 14 men they then scored a try which, when converted, meant the home side did not even take a bonus point. Had Edinburgh won, they might also have been able to beat demotivated opponents in the return leg and have a chance of qualification for the quarter-finals.
In Rennie's absence, his coach admitted the flanker had felt responsible, but Robinson made it clear that he has absolved him of blame for the defeat. "I'm still disappointed at what actually happened. I felt the tackle looked worse than it was," he said of the fact that Rennie was sin-binned, then subsequently cited, then suspended.
Rennie's recall meant Edinburgh could have reverted to the back-row comprising three players who have all played as specialist openside flankers as they were doing before his ban. However, Robinson has always said he would not do that every week and has gone for a more orthodox formation this time, with Scott Newlands keeping his place and Alan MacDonald missing out.
"The back-row was a tough choice," said Robinson. "Scott Newlands did very well last week. He adds balance to what we've got there and has been ball-carrying very well.It allows Rossco Rennie to have a bit of a blast straight away and then we can bring Alan MacDonald on after say 50 or 60 minutes to lift the pace again."
He added that Mike Blair, who captains Scotland as well as the club, had made a fine speech to the team this week telling them they must focus on the team and not see the match as a trial.
"You can get wrapped up in one-to-one battles and I think that's what Glasgow want to happen," said Robinson.
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