Damien Hoyland's impressive form provides silver lining for Edinburgh after disappointing end to the season
If there is a theme to Edinburgh's season, it is that they keep coming up short on the big occasions. For the second game in a row, they suffered a knockout defeat, this time one in Bordeaux that ended their season. And if the circumstances were very different to their Pro14 semi-final loss to Ulster – this time an understrength Edinburgh side were underdogs and were never in control after going 14-0 down in the first ten minutes – their Challenge Cup quarter-final loss at Bordeaux-Begles still sparked some bittersweet reflections.
Although Edinburgh showed remarkable resilience to drag themselves back into contention after losing two early tries, ultimately they were still the victim of avoidable errors, with an early Charlie Shiel knock-on and a late Nick Haining infringement both leading directly to crucial scores.
Yet, unlike Ulster, there were also some silver-linings to this loss. One of them was the form of some of the less-vaunted members of the squad, such as wing Damien Hoyland, the Scotland international who has had to play second fiddle to the force of nature that is Duhan van der Merwe. Against Bordeaux, Hoyland put in a rousingly full-blooded performance, which bodes well for the Test windows when Van der Merwe is likely to be away with Scotland.
After two years ruined by injury, Hoyland, who capped an assured display with the try that brought Scotland back to within six points of their hosts, looked to be back to his best. Indeed, he encapsulated the character that Edinburgh showed after a poor start on France's Atlantic seaboard.
“We gave them an early start but then did all the right things to give ourselves the best chance to win the game, and it is way more frustrating when you do that then come up short,” said Hoyland. “In some respects, we were unlucky but with the amount of mistakes we made against a top five team in Europe, they were going to punish us.
“It is bitterly disappointing on many respects because we were in with a chance, we had done the right things and we had the right game-strategy, and we were so close. But the thing we can take from this, and we took it from the Ulster game is that we are on the up. From these two games, there are a lot of things we are going to be better at. And going into next season we will be gunning for it, and we know what works.”
Hoyland himself has had to bide his time, but believes there is an esprit de corps amongst the Edinburgh players and coaches which means that it is only a matter of time before they manage to turn knockout defeats into some silverware. Even though they conceded two early tries against Bordeaux, he says that there was a calmness amongst the Scots, and a belief that they could drag themselves back onto contention.
“We never felt like the game was getting away from us, and we have this incredible fighting spirit,” he said. “This team will always have that so it is just about executing those fine margins and cutting down the mistakes. But we are completely confident about being capable of winning big games. Errors happen and Bordeaux did really well to capitalise on our mistakes.
“But we work bloody hard and that’s one of the best things about this team. Mistakes happen – people drop the ball, the best player in the world will drop the ball – but there is no point looking into that too deeply because mistakes will happen. I would never say we are working too hard, because you can never work hard enough.”
Looking ahead to the coming season, Hoyland's form was encouraging. It may have been Darcy Graham whose superb jinking run made his try, but Hoyland was in the right place to take the pass, finished smartly, and was solid throughout. With Graham, Van der Merwe and Blair Kinghorn all likely to be away with Scotland for long periods, Hoyland's ability to cover wing and fullbck means he will have plenty of opportunities this season.
“I’m pretty happy with how I played,” said Hoyland, who reckoned the heat made this one of the most physically gruelling matches he has ever played in. “I have been training really hard and waiting for this opportunity, and I’m really glad I got it here in such a big game. It is now about continuing to push the other guys – Duhan, Darcy and Blair – who are really good players, but Cockers [Edinburgh coach Richard Cockerill] has made it clear that if someone takes their opportunity then they will keep their place. It is all about the competition because that is what keeps pushing all of our standards up.
“I would be lying if I said I wasn’t desperate to play our next game. But I just have to be the best I can be and take it from there. But my body is feeling good now and I’m ready to go whenever the next opportunity is. I wasn’t in my best form and then I had those injuries, but because of that I definitely feel I learnt a lot and think I am a better player now.”
