'No trophies - but Edinburgh now a team to be proud of'
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Edinburgh have played 26 games this season in all competitions. In 12 of those we have conceded a total of 16 tries in the 10-minute period following half-time.
It is more than we concede in any other part of our matches. Over the season it has arguably cost Edinburgh at least two league wins. On Saturday it cost us a chance of a semi-final.
The score Bulls got in the 51st minute and the fact they failed to cross the line again in the remainder of the match makes it hard to see past that 40-51 minute period as being decisive.
Early in the game the broadcasters showed a graphic that told us Bulls forwards were 57kg heavier than Edinburgh. That weight certainly showed at scrum time and as weird as might seem when you score five tries it felt like a rearguard action for much of the 80 minutes.
In a lot of ways our three games against Bulls this season typify what progress there has been.
Game 1. I described Edinburgh as asthmatic and wasteful. Only one try.
Game 2. A much improved and focused win. We looked like a team.
Game 3. A five-try thriller where we just fell short on power.
Depending on your viewpoint the progress is there. A semi-final and a quarter-final allied to a try count we have only surpassed once in our history is balanced out by the fact we won fewer games in the league than we did last year.
There are no trophies. That's not new and if that's your reason for supporting Edinburgh, then to paraphrase Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca, you've been misinformed.
But there is now a team you can be proud of. A team who are putting their bodies on the line for their long-suffering supporters. A team that finally looks like it wants to live up to the 'on paper' reputation that seems to follow them about.
We have some departures that could hurt, Jamie Ritchie probably chiefly among those, but we have recruited well and I'm excited to see them make their mark alongside some of the young players who are stepping up.
I'm already looking forward to next season as long as we continue playing as if we have a chip on our shoulders as opposed to a silver spoon in our mouths.
