Edinburgh's first Pro14 semi-final proof of progress for Richard Cockerill
- Published
With he and his family settled in Edinburgh and things going well on the pitch, Richard Cockerill was happy to extend his contract beyond 2021
Edinburgh are on an upward trajectory and the Pro14 semi-final against Ulster is a prize for the players' efforts, says head coach Richard Cockerill.
Having topped their conference, the capital side take on Ulster in their first ever home semi-final at Murrayfield on Saturday.
"We're improving all the time," said Cockerill.
"Of the four teams left, we're probably the least favoured but we'll back ourselves to see how far we can go."
Edinburgh benefited from the Pro14 doing away with quarter-final ties this season on account of the coronavirus pandemic and the curtailed season. When competitive action returned on 22 August, their 30-15 win over Glasgow Warriors ensured it was Ulster who would be doing the travelling for the semi-final.
"I know it's been disjointed but we've earned the right to be here from what we've done earlier in the season," said Cockerill, who recently signed a new deal to stay at Edinburgh until 2023.
"We've been working hard for the last three years and hopefully we're starting to see a reward for that hard work.
"In the first year we qualified for the first time to be in the play-offs.
"Second year we dropped off in the league but [in the Champions Cup] we beat Toulon, Montpellier, qualified for a home quarter-final and probably had an opportunity to beat Munster. Year three we're in a home semi-final.
"I hope we've learned the lessons of the last couple of years where we've been in tight games that we've just lost, and that we now have the experience at club and Test level that we can win these types of games."
Darcy Graham and Magnus Bradbury were among Edinburgh's 10 changes for the return leg 15-3 defeat by Glasgow, and Cockerill now has a fully fit squad to choose from.
He said: "We know if we play to our potential we have a good enough team to get a result. If we don't, they are certainly good enough to beat us."