Scottish pro sides in contrasting form for return to European arena

Edinburgh lost from a losing position against Munster

As they prepare to step back into the European arena, Scotland's two professional teams could hardly have had more contrasting preparations.

Edinburgh gear up for a Heineken Champions Cup opener against three-time champions Saracens on Sunday, having been doing some internal reflection this week.

Mike Blair's side were overpowered on their own patch by Munster in the United Rugby Championship last weekend. A solid first-half performance had the hosts leading at the break, only to be blown away by the Irish side in the second half.

By contrast, Glasgow Warriors recovered from a poor opening 40 minutes to run in five second-half tries and put Zebre to the sword in Italy for their first league victory on the road since January.

Not a bad time to put that unwanted long winless away record to bed as they prepare to head for Bath in their Challenge Cup opener on Saturday.

'Saracens will want to make a statement, but we love a challenge'

While results had been mixed in the league this season, Edinburgh had been competitive in every match - until Friday.

The dominance of Munster after the 39-minute mark - scoring 31 unanswered points from that point on - was very worrying from an Edinburgh perspective, and Blair admits Saracens will have taken plenty of encouragement from his side's capitulation.

"We've given Saracens the blueprint for how to beat us and that's Saracens' kind of game, the physicality and pressure at line-outs too," the Edinburgh coach told BBC Scotland.

Mike Blair is in his second season in charge of Edinburgh

One of Blair's predecessors at Edinburgh, Duncan Hodge, says while the club would always want to be part of the Champions Cup, it can be a mixed blessing.

"Edinburgh playing in Europe is always going to be a big ask, it's a tough competition," said Hodge, the former Scotland fly-half.

"You do so well and you get in that competition and you almost need extra resources to cope.

"If you take a couple of beatings you can lose some confidence, all of a sudden you come back and it's Scotland time and you're looking around thinking, 'okay, we now need to get back on the horse'. It's a tricky period of the season."

Edinburgh can take heart from their last visit to face Saracens in December 2021, when they turned over their illustrious opponents 21-18 in the Challenge Cup.

"That gives us a little bit of belief," said Blair. "But Saracens will approach this game differently.

"With them being back in the Champions Cup, they'll want to make a statement.

"What I've loved about this team and this group is they love a challenge and I believe we'll step up on Saturday."

'Glasgow can go to The Rec and put a marker down'

The Challenge Cup is undoubtedly a more forgiving environment and offers a greater chance to go deep in the competition than the Champions Cup, and that has to be Glasgow's aim this season.

To do that they will need to shed the 'boom or bust' reputation they have developed in recent times, with an excellent performance often followed by a complete implosion.

Things could easily have gone that way in Parma on Saturday as the URC's bottom side, Zebre, put the Warriors under pressure in the first half, and it's to their credit that they collected themselves and ultimately ran out comfortable winners.

"There's definitely an identity in how Glasgow are trying to play and it is a more attack-minded game," says former Scotland international Chris Paterson.

Sintu Majenzi and Glasgow face a trip to Bath

"Franco Smith's teams tend to kick a bit less, try and attack the wider edges, try and play at a tempo that I believe suits them."

Paterson believes the trip to Bath in round one offers Glasgow a big opportunity to set the tone for their entire European campaign.

"Glasgow can go to The Rec, a brilliant place to play with a massive history, and try to put a marker down," he says.

"The first weekend in Europe is always really important. A lot of teams go all-out in the first week and see what happens, especially now that there are only four games. The first week should be full blooded and I believe Glasgow can add to their win on the road last week.

"You want to be at the sharp end. If you can get a run in the Challenge Cup it can be very positive for your season.

"Edinburgh did that last year - narrowly lost out to Wasps in the quarter-final, which was disappointing but they won on the road against Saracens and built a team spirit winning on the road. Glasgow can target that."