Bradley Davies makes a break through Edinburgh's defence during last week's Heineken cup clash
Baber and Burnell make one change to team following 25-8 win over Edinburgh
With Cardiff Blues having recorded their six successive win over Edinburgh last Friday, the Blues make one change for their Round 4 Heineken Cup match against Edinburgh this Friday, 16 December, 8.00pm kick off at Murrayfield.
Winger Alex Cuthbert is out with a minor hamstring injury and is replaced by Gavin Evans, with Dafydd Hewitt moving onto the bench.
Twenty points from the boot of Dan Parks and a well taken Alex Cuthbert try secured the win for the Blues, who now sit at the top of Pool 2 with 12 points, having recorded three wins from three so far in the tournament. The Blues did the double over Edinburgh in last season’s competition with an 18-17 home win and a 21-14 victory on the road, but Blues backs coach Gareth Baber is taking nothing for granted this Friday.
“Obviously it’s good to try to stick to a side that’s winning and keep that momentum going,” said Baber. “Alex Cuthbert had to withdraw with a niggling hamstring injury picked up against Edinburgh last Friday. He trained on Tuesday and had physio on it, but it’s not quite right.”
“Last Friday’s win was crucial, but we have to back up that performance in Murrayfield on Friday. They are all big games in the Heineken Cup as we aim at moving to the knockout stages. London Irish picked up a win last weekend against Racing Metro and are still in it, so there’s a long way to go and we are not taking anything for granted.”
Starting XV
15 Leigh Halfpenny
14 Gavin Evans
13 Casey Laulala
12 Jamie Roberts
11 Chris Czekaj
10 Dan Parks
9 Lloyd Williams
8 Xavier Rush
7 Sam Warburton
6 Michael Paterson
5 Paul Tito (c)
4 Bradley Davies
3 Taufa’ao Filise
2 T Rhys Thomas
1 Gethin Jenkins
Replacements:
16 Ryan Tyrell
17 John Yapp
18 Scott Andrews
19 Josh Navidi
20 Maama Molitika
21 Richie Rees
22 Ceri Sweeney
23 Dafydd Hewitt
Not available due to injury
Alex Cuthbert – hamstring
James Down – ankle
Andries Pretorius – knee
Deiniol Jones – shoulder
Martyn Williams – arm
Kristian Dacey – shoulder