Dave Denton, the Scotland No.8, could make his return to the international stage during the November Test series after Edinburgh coach Alan Solomons suggested that the flaxen-haired forward, who suffered a hamstring strain just before the start of the new season, is just a fortnight away from competitive action.
On the advice of the Edinburgh medical staff, Solomons believes that Denton could figure as a replacement in the capital side's European Challenge Cup meeting with Lyon at BT Murrayfield on October 24. All being well, he would then be able to start the Guinness PRO12 match against Leinster the following weekend.
"Dents seems to have recovered and I hope we can bench him against Lyon," said Solomons. "I'm optimistic about that. I have spoken to Scott Johnson and Vern Cotter [Scotland director of rugby and head coach, respectively] and both agreed."
Solomons also indicated that Matt Scott, who has been out since the end of last season with a shoulder problem, should be ready to resume playing in December, his target date being the second tranche of Challenge Cup games.
The probable return of the two players is good news for a club that has been desperately in need of a boost in recent weeks. Edinburgh opened their competitive season with a remarkable away win against Munster, but have not won a game since. It is a sequence of results during which they have lost to Connacht, Ospreys and Ulster, with only a draw against Scarlets to interrupt the losing sequence.
While stressing that the club had other issues to deal with, Solomons made it clear that Edinburgh had felt the absences of the two Scotland players in recent weeks. "I'm not knocking our strength in depth," he said. "I think it is decent. But when you play powerful sides, particularly away from home, guys with international experience do make a huge difference.
"I think we miss Matt a lot. We miss his explosiveness in the backline, but that's the way it is. Matt is critical to us. We need all our players back and playing. It took [Munster's] Paul O'Connell three games to get back to his best. Matt and Denton will not come back and be brilliant straight away."
Solomons will welcome back two players today, as prop Ali Dickinson and winger Dougie Fife come into the side which plays Newport Gwent Dragons at Murrayfield. He will also benefit from the presence of a fully fit Ross Ford, which was certainly not the case last weekend.
Although nothing was said at the time, Ford suffered a stomach upset and did not travel with the team to Belfast for the Ulster match. Instead, he rested at home and only flew over on the day of the game, arriving just a couple of hours before kick-off. Solomons acknowledged that, understandably, the hooker had been below his best, but paid tribute to his commitment at a time when the club is desperately short of cover in his position.
Edinburgh lost last weekend's game 30-0, but Solomons suggested that the result flattered Ulster. Against that, his own emphasis on Edinburgh's injury problems overlooked the fact that the Irish side's casualty list has also looked pretty gruesome lately.
Asked if he felt under pressure personally after his side's recent run, Solomons said that he was feeling no heat whatsoever. He also dismissed a suggestion that another defeat would all but obliterate Edinburgh's chances of the top-six PRO12 finish which would guarantee a place in next season's top-tier European competition. "There is a long way to go but it is important for us to get a result this weekend," said Solomons.
Dragons and Edinburgh are both on seven league points in the PRO12 table, but the Welsh side's all-round competitiveness is shown by the fact that two of their points were losing bonuses, while another was for putting four tries past Treviso in their last-but-one game.
"They have a lot of experience in their tight five, a good loose trio, good young half-backs," said Solomons of today's opponents. "It will be tough."
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