Darcy Graham: 'I had other offers but I want to win silverware with Edinburgh'
Darcy Graham has given Scottish rugby a major festive fillip by agreeing a new contract with Edinburgh through until the 2027 Rugby World Cup.
The 26-year-old Scotland winger, who has been at the capital club since 2017, turned down offers from elsewhere to sign a new three-year deal.
Graham has scored 34 tries in 61 outings for Edinburgh and is also Scotland’s joint-second highest try scorer with 24 in 39 Tests, 12 of those having come in his last eight internationals.
He is only three behind Stuart Hogg’s all-time record of 27, which seems destined to fall to his fellow Hawick native in the near future, unless Duhan van der Merwe, currently on 21 tries, beats him to it.
“Make no bones about it, Darcy [Graham] is box office,” said Edinburgh senior coach Sean Everitt. “He’s a world-class talent who can change a game at the drop of a hat. We’ve seen that for both Edinburgh and Scotland through the years – it’s brilliant that we’ve managed to re-sign him on a new long-term deal.
“Darcy is a guy who just loves to play the game of rugby and I think that being here in Edinburgh, surrounded by his team-mates, friends and family, suits him to a tee.
“This is his boyhood club where he has made his name and the Edinburgh supporters absolutely love him – you only have to hear their reaction every time he scores at home. It’s hugely exciting for both club and country that Darcy has decided his future remains in Edinburgh.”
Since the start of last season, Graham has scored 24 tries in his last 21 games overall for Edinburgh and Scotland, despite being sidelined with damaged knee ligaments for three months last term.
He has just returned from a further two-month absence with a hip problem sustained in Scotland’s final World Cup pool match against Ireland, making his Edinburgh comeback off the bench in their Challenge Cup win against Castres before starting Friday’s URC defeat by Glasgow at Scotstoun.
Graham said he was “hugely excited” after agreeing his new deal. “I did have other offers, but this is home, and after speaking with Sean [Everitt], he really sold me on his plans for the club. That got me excited and I’m keen to be part of what we’re building here in Edinburgh.
“I think Sean and I are pretty similar. He knows what he wants. I know what I want. He keeps it nice and simple - just go out and play rugby and that’s exactly what I’m all about. We sometimes make rugby too confusing. I feel like I can play the type of game that I enjoy under Sean.”
Having now committed the peak years of his career to Edinburgh, the winger is desperate to help the club win a trophy.
“It’s my ambition to win silverware with Edinburgh,” he added. “I’d be gutted if I went my whole career here and didn’t win anything with this club and group of players.
“I genuinely feel like this group can win something and that was also a factor in wanting to stay in Edinburgh. We’ve got the talent, a great new home, it’s now about backing it up week on week.”
Latest Comments
Spot on Ben. Dead right. Havili looked great at 10. Easily the highest rugby IQ of any NZ player these days. Getting a kick charged down is a result of getting used to adjusting your depth to the line at 10, which he will sort out with time. But other than that it was an outstanding first effort in that position this year. I think the NZ media has misunderstood this directive from Razor. Havili might rank behind B Barrett this year, but Beuden is 33 this month and won't last much longer. DMaC is great but flaky and not really a test match animal (his efforts in Dunedin versus Aus last year for example). If Razor can't have Mounga, DMaC is too unstructured for Razor (and is just too small for test rugby). Havili will end up our first choice first five, and in partnership with Jodie will be excellent. Two triple threat operators in tandem, and big bodies and tough tacklers to boot. Jordoe will be the ABs goal kicker. I am an Aucklander and Blues (and Warriors) fan, but Havili at 10 is going to be sensational in time… he can be the best first five in the world by the end of this year. No question.
Go to commentsSharks deserved to be far further back by the last quarter. Their tackling was awful, their set pieces were disappointing, their defensive organization was poor (especially on the Kok side of the D line), they kept making unnecessary errors, and they never looked like cracking the Clermont defense during those first 60m. Masuku kept them in touch, with some help from the Clermont generosity on penalty opportunities. Agree with the writer of this article. It was belligerence, and ability to raise their pressure game just enough, that turned the last quarter into a Bok-style shutout. Clermont have a reputation of not playing the full 80m, and there was a bit of that for sure. But, quite often when the intensity of a team drops off in the last quarter credit is due to the opponent for tiring them out. At 60m, with the Kok try, you thought that just maybe the game was on. At 70m, with the Mapimpi contribution, one felt that Clermont were fading, while facing a team that would maintain the pressure game through the final whistle. Good win in the end, but the Sharks are still playing way below their potential. And with their resources, and a coach that has had enough time to figure things out, they are running out of excuses.
Go to comments