Pro14: Glasgow Warriors have plenty to play for against Edinburgh - Dave Rennie
- Published
Dave Rennie (right) is predicting "a brutal game" against Edinburgh
Head coach Dave Rennie says his Glasgow Warriors side have plenty of motivation of their own as they prepare to face a "desperate" Edinburgh.
Warriors are already assured of a home Pro14 semi-final heading into Saturday's 1872 Cup decider.
But their hosts may have to take something from the game to ensure a first play-off, depending on how Ulster fare at Munster that afternoon.
"It's a big game for both sides," Rennie told BBC Scotland.
The final regular-season fixture at Murrayfield doubles as the third leg of the Scottish sides' inter-city trophy.
"There's a cup at stake which has got a lot of history and means a lot to our boys," said Rennie.
"There's lots of motivating factors for us. We've got to make a statement for ourselves. We know they are desperate.
"We've got to throw the first punch, so to speak."
Rennie confirmed that Huw Jones will miss the derby, having suffered concussion and several "really slight facial fractures" in Saturday's loss to Ulster, but he hopes to have the Scotland centre available for the semi-final.
Glasgow centre Huw Jones will miss out against Edinburgh through injury
Edinburgh ended Warriors' 10-game winning streak in the first inter-city clash in December, despite losing Simon Berghan to an early red card, while Glasgow won the return fixture 17-0 at Scotstoun.
Edinburgh head coach Richard Cockerill told BBC Sport Scotland he is savouring the opportunity to put Glasgow's status as Scotland's "best team" to the test.
Asked about Cockerill's comments, Rennie replied: "He's probably right - because if we win it means we're the best side in Scotland.
"I'll be disappointed if it's friendly rivalry. A lot of these guys play together and they're good mates.
"But for 80 minutes and whatever time before that in preparation, they'll have the same attitude. It'll be a brutal game."
Edinburgh have made substantial strides under Cockerill, the combative former boss at Leicester Tigers and Toulon, to stand on the brink of securing knockout league rugby for the first time.
Scotland captain John Barclay, centre Matt Scott and former New Zealand Under-20 captain Simon Hickey are among their new recruits for next season.
"From my point of view, it's irrelevant what they're doing," said Rennie, who has re-signed 13 players for next season, including skipper Ryan Wilson.
"We've finished our contracting too. We've kept the majority of the guys we want to keep and got a handful coming in to add a little bit extra in key areas.
"Edinburgh have done the same, but it's a pretty impressive competition. You've got a lot of sides right across who have got pretty good playing squads.
"Maybe people outside of this competition don't really understand the quality of the players and how good it is."
Meanwhile, Rennie welcomed the Pro14's early discussions over the formation a development league to sit beneath the main tournament - as long as the schedule is structured so as not to place a further burden on teams who will be shorn of swathes of their top talent during international windows.