EDINBURGH RUGBY will come up against some old foes in the Challenge Cup next season, with all three of their Pool 5 rivals being familiar to them from past European competitions.
They played - and got the better of - London Irish most recently, in the quarter-finals of the same tournament last season. Edinburgh then beat the Dragons in the semi-final before losing out to Gloucester in the final.
The Scots and the Irish are joined in the pool by two French clubs, Grenoble and Agen. Two of Alan Solomons' assistant coaches, forwards coach Stevie Scott and incoming backs coach Duncan Hodge, were in the Edinburgh ranks when they last met Grenoble, back in 1999-2000. Honours were even over the two matches, with Edinburgh winning 23-18 at Netherdale but losing 21-19.
In the Heineken Cup in late 2006, Agen won both pool games against Edinburgh, winning 19-17 at home and 19-7 in Scotland. Hodge was an unused substitute for the away game.
The pattern of two French teams and one from the English leagues is the same as last season, when Bordeaux, Lyon and London Welsh provided the opposition in the pool games, but Solomons warned that this time round it will be tougher to get into the knockout stages. "Last season we found ourselves in a pretty strong pool but I think this season we'll be facing tougher opposition," the head coach said on edinburghrugby.org.
"Grenoble are a side with much history, an established club competing in the Top 14. Agen are another side with a rich background, a famous club where things are on the up. Then London Irish - although we played them recently - will be a different club next season. They have a new coach in Tom Coventry and a new backroom team, new players coming in and will be pushing for great things.
"Although the French sides aren't quite in Bordeaux's mould, they'll both be tough opponents. That's good for us - pitting ourselves against such quality competition will push us to rise to the challenge and make the tournament better."
The pool stages begin in mid-November, a fortnight after the Rugby World Cup final, and conclude in late January. The quarter-finals and semi-finals will both be held in April, and the final will take place at the Grand Stade de Lyon on 13 May, the day before the Champions Cup final is played at the same venue.
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