THE hunt for a change of scenery and new challenges can take you some some strange places – in the case of Matt Scott, the Scotland and Edinburgh centre, they are enough to take him off to Gloucester.
Speaking for the first time about his decision to end five years with the Murrayfield side and join Greig Laidlaw, his former Edinburgh team-mate who seems to be in line to captain the English West Country side next season, Scott was adamant his move was all about improving himself.
"I have seen a lot of former team-mates go down to the Premiership and do really well," he said. "Speaking to them, it has given them a new lease of life for no other reason than it is a new environment. It is like starting a new job, you have new colleagues to impress and all that.
"I will be extremely sad to leave but it is not just a rugby decision, it is a personal decision as well. I did not want to look back and see that I stayed in my comfort zone. I wanted to play in a different league and try to improve myself. That is the main thing – to try to put myself out of my comfort zone to get better. I think I respond quite well to challenges like that."
Fortunately for Scott, he should get the chance to make his farewell appearance in front of the Edinburgh fans in the final game of the season at home to Cardiff Blues. Though he has been out since early in the Six Nations with a torn ligament in his elbow, the injury was not as bad as first feared and he is ready to make his comeback this weekend against Munster in a game he accepts is in effect a knock-out match in the hunt for top-level European rugby next season.
"We are treating it as a cup final," he said. "Losing is not an option. Maybe mathematically we might be okay, but we have to go in looking to win. It’s a tough place to win but the guys have done that once or twice over the years, so we know we can do it.
"They are in the same boat as us. For a club like Munster, with their heritage, not to be in the top European competition means they will be more than up for it as well.
"It’s a good time to be back when we have something tangible to play for. It [European Champions Cup] would be such a big achievement for the club. I’m going to do everything I can to help the boys get there.
"Getting my opportunity here changed my life completely; it's opened many doors for me. Edinburgh is a place I'll be back to live one day and, who knows, I may even be back to play."
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