Edinburgh are set to welcome back Scotland prop Pierre Schoeman for their Challenge Cup quarter-final against Sharks on Saturday, but Argentina fullback Emiliano Boffelli will miss the trip to Durban.
Schoeman sat out the round of 16 win over Bayonne after picking up a concussion in training, but head coach Sean Everitt has confirmed the 31-cap Scotland international is back in training and should be available for Saturday's last eight clash.
His return will bolster Edinburgh’s set-piece, which struggled at times when they faced Sharks just a fortnight ago in URC action.
Everitt knows he’ll need his international players to be at their best if Edinburgh are to cause an upset at King’s Park.
“Pierre [Schoeman] will be back, and we’ll have Ewan Ashman, Dave Cherry and Boan Venter is back from injury as well as WP [Nel] sticking up his hand again in the tighthead position.
“It will make for a good contest, especially when you look at our second row where we’ve got Sam Skinner, Jamie Hodgson, Marshall Sykes and Grant Gilchrist to choose from.”
Sharks went into the teams’ first encounter having endured a difficult spell, but having won their last three games in all competitions will fancy their chances of progressing to the last four.
Having their World Cup-winning Springbok front row of Ox Nche, Bongi Mbonambi and Vincent Koch back together has been a major factor in their turnaround, said Everitt.
“If you look at the games that the Sharks have played over the last three weeks, they’ve had their Springbok front row back. That’s something [Sharks head coach] John Plumtree has been wanting.
“We all know their set-piece is a big contribution to winning rugby games. That would have given them a boost.
“It was always a matter of time before they were going to fire.”
On their last visit to Durban, Edinburgh were in the game into the last quarter despite producing an error-strewn performance in attack. Sharks pulled away late on before Boan Venter’s consolation score added respectability to the result.
READ MORE: Five things we learned as Edinburgh slump to Sharks defeat
A side would rarely get a chance to put right that performance so soon and Everitt is relishing the prospect of another game against his former side.
He added: “It’s a great opportunity to go and challenge ourselves again against the Sharks in Durban.
“What will be easier for us this time around is that we’re familiar with what we’re going to face.
“They won’t make many changes to the team that played us two weeks ago. So we know what’s coming.
“We also know what our shortfalls were the last time we played them and have worked hard on that.”
Edinburgh will again be without Emiliano Boffelli, who has missed the last three games with a back injury, but Everitt hopes to have the Argentina fullback available in the next two to three weeks.
Edinburgh booked their place in the last 16 with victory over Bayonne at Scottish Gas Murrayfield. The French side are yet to win a game on the road this season, but Everitt believes there’s plenty his team can take from that match.
He said: “Our emphasis after the [URC] Sharks game was that we can prepare well as a team and do everything right on the training field but it’s the individual stuff that needs to take care of itself.
“That’s probably what let us down against the Sharks and the Stormers, more so than the team collectively.
“The guys really pulled it together and it was a much-improved performance. I’m hoping we will learn from that and take it into the Sharks game.”
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