Van der Merwe makes Edinburgh return as part of 'ridiculous' back three

Scotland international and British & Irish Lion Duhan van der Merwe is set to make his ‘second debut’ for Edinburgh against Benetton at DAM Health Stadium.

It will be the first time he's played for Edinburgh since 2021, having left for the now-defunct Worcester Warriors last year.

Van der Merwe quickly became a cult hero in the Scottish capital after scoring 32 tries in 67 appearances for Edinburgh in his first stint at the club. He will be part of a truly mouth-watering Edinburgh back three which includes Argentine international Emiliano Boffelli at full-back and current URC top-try scorer Darcy Graham.

Scotland cap Mark Bennett returns from injury to start at outside centre alongside James Lang. Blair Kinghorn and Henry Pyrgos make up a familiar half-back combo.

“We were obviously disappointed with last weekend’s result but, after further review, there were a lot many positives to take into this week’s training and the squad have reacted brilliantly," said head coach Mike Blair. “We’ve had a really strong week of training and the guys have been switched on and fully focussed, ready take the field again this Saturday night where’ll face a Benetton side full of confidence.

“We’re delighted to name Duhan [van der Merwe] in the starting line-up and he’ll no doubt get an excellent reception from our supporters who’ll be excited to see him back in Edinburgh colours.

“The squad are eager to get back to winning ways and the crowd at DAM Health Stadium will have a huge part to play in driving us forward for the full 80 minutes.”

EDINBURGH:

15. Emiliano Boffelli

14. Darcy Graham

13. Mark Bennett

12. James Lang

11. Duhan van der Merwe

10. Blair Kinghorn

9. Henry Pyrgos

1. Pierre Schoeman

2. David Cherry

3. WP Nel

4. Sam Skinner

5. Grant Gilchrist

6. Nick Haining

7. Luke Crosbie

8. Viliame Mata

REPLACEMENTS:

16. Adam McBurney

17. Boan Venter

18. Luan de Bruin

19. Jamie Hodgson

20. Ben Muncaster

21. Charlie Shiel

22. Charlie Savala

23. Chris Dean