THE HERALD REPORTS
KEVIN FERRIE, Chief Rugby Writer December 24 2008
Graeme Morrison's recall to the Glasgow Warriors side after two months on the sidelines could be crucial to their bid to shut down Edinburgh's attacking threat in Friday's inter-city derby at Murrayfield.

While the introduction of Hefin O'Hare on the wing for the injured Lome Fa'atau and those of set-piece specialists Al Kellock and Dougie Hall were almost automatic after poor performances in the basics against Bath 10 days ago, the management had a major decision to make when Morrison became available again.

He would have been Scotland's first-choice inside centre for the autumn Tests, but his place in the Warriors side had been taken by his experienced fellow internationalist, Andy Henderson, who has been performing solidly.

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Yet the Warriors have one of the best defensive records in the Magners League as opposed to one of the worst in the Heineken Cup. That being the case, it seems significant that Morrison missed half their European matches because of the knee injury suffered in October, yet only one of the seven games that have seen them grind their way to second place in the league.

"I think that's just coincidence," said the 26-year-old.

However, Morrison has been given additional defensive responsibility this season and the Scotland centre said he is relishing that role.

"I've been at Glasgow for a long time now so I'm one of the more senior players and there has been an emphasis on taking more of a leadership role," he said. "Gary Mercer the defence coach talks to myself and John Barclay about our defence a lot and I also quite often find myself linking between the back-row and the rest of the backs, so it is a good position for that."

Of course, there is always a concern about match fitness when players have been out for a lengthy period, but Morrison managed to get some vital game time in with his old club Glasgow Hawks against Edinburgh Accies two weekends ago.

"I felt like I was wearing a big bullseye on my body," he said. "It's been a couple of years since I've been as sore after a match as I was following that one.

"It was good for my confidence, though, because I was nervous before the game about it being the first test of my knee."

The result of these back- to-back matches will decide where the David Lloyd 1872 Cup is held throughout 2009 and will also almost certainly decided which of the Scottish teams has a realistic chance of challenging for further honours in the Magners League.

However, the timing of these matches, as well as the personnel, means that there is always an added dimension to them with shadows of the trials of yesteryear. This time that particularly applies in the midfield, where the trio who performed for Scotland in the autumn, Edinburgh's Phil Godman, Nick De Luca and Ben Cairns, are directly up against their three strongest rivals, Dan Parks, Morrison and Max Evans.

"It's a tasty match up," said Morrison. "Everyone looks at these matches and says it's a trial. For us Max and I have been playing well together earlier in the season so we are just looking to play to our capabilities."

Whether or not they get the opportunity to do that will depend very much on the platform they are provided with, something that was badly lacking against Bath last time out.

That places particular emphasis at kick-offs and lineout on returning captain Al Kellock as well as Dougie Hall, back after Fergus Thomson made his comeback against the English side and performed well in most aspects, but struggled with his throwing in.

This article was posted on 24-Dec-2008, 08:05 by Hugh Barrow.