Duhan to be unleashed at Loftus

Edinburgh are set to welcome back winger Duhan van der Merwe for Saturday’s Vodacom URC quarter-final against the Vodacom Bulls.

The 29-year-old has not played since suffering an ankle injury in March but trained this week and will travel with the team to South Africa.

“He came through training well on Monday, he’s got one more training session to do on Tuesday. But as we stand right now, he’ll be on the plane,” said coach Sean Everitt.

“Duhan’s a world-class player as an international. He will bring a wealth of experience to the team. The team will take a lot of confidence from him [just being there]. We just hope that he pulls through on Tuesday and he can get to his best as soon as possible.”

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However, Everitt couldn’t confirm the availability of locks Grant Gilchrist and Glen Young. Gilchrist has been sidelined with a hamstring issue, while Young’s wife is due to give birth.

“Gilco will do his final fitness test to see if he’s able to play the game on Saturday,” said Everitt. “We can’t take a player with us that might not play, so we’ll make a final call at lunchtime on Tuesday.

“Glen is waiting for his wife to give birth to their third child, so there’s a question mark around his availability for the trip to South Africa. We’ve got a flight booked for him on Thursday night. And should all be OK, then hopefully he’ll join us on Friday.”

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Marshall Sykes and Sam Skinner, who started in the second row in recent wins against Connacht and Ulster, are both available to face the Bulls.

Photo: Gordon Arons/Gallo Images