Byron Kelleher, the All Blacks scrum-half who has joined Toulouse, claims he knows all about Edinburgh as excitement mounts ahead of his Heineken Cup debut at Murrayfield at the weekend.
Kelleher wants to use a victory over the Scottish side as a springboard to better things on the European stage, having marked his first start for Toulouse at the weekend by inspiring them to a victory over Stade Francais, the champions, in the French championship.
While Edinburgh and Toulouse will be meeting for the 10th time in the competition, it will be Kelleher's first taste of cross-channel action. "From what I have seen on TV, the rugby in Europe is different to back home," he said. "It's probably not as fast, but it is much more physical. Toulouse play a similar style to the All Blacks, which is great for me.
"With the technology available these days, it doesn't take much to find out about the other teams. I've studied Edinburgh and the other sides on video and know all about them. It is clear that, with Leicester and Leinster in our pool, we will have a very tough task and it is vital that we get off to a strong start in Scotland."
Kelleher added: "I know a lot of the players through international rugby and the quality all three sides have. We realise we will need to produce some special performances."
"After having played many years of Southern Hemisphere rugby, I decided it's time for me to move on and set myself new goals and challenge myself outside New Zealand. That's what I'm doing in this part of the world, and I can't wait to get stuck into the Heineken Cup."
Elsewhere, Sale Sharks have confirmed Sebastian Chabal, the France back-row player, will be fit for their European Challenge Cup clash against Montpellier. The 29-year-old left the field with a neck injury during Sharks' victory against Bath on Friday. He has had checks but felt better and was given the all-clear to return to action in Thursday's match.
Chabal had been making his first appearance of the season for the club, after having returned from World Cup duty. He is expected to be joined in the Sharks side this week by two more World Cup players, Jason White and Mark Cueto.
Rory Lamont, the Scotland back who missed the Bath clash with an ankle injury, is also hoping to feature.
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