Grant Gilchrist: 'What comes of that on Sunday, we’ll all be able to live with'

Grant Gilchrist has called for his Edinburgh team-mates to restore some pride with a strong performance in Sunday’s Investec Champions Cup last-16 clash with Leinster at Aviva Stadium.

Sean Everitt’s side have endured a miserable United Rugby Championship campaign so far, with their play-off hopes over after three consecutive demoralising defeats against Ulster, Lions and Stormers left them 13th in the table.

They remain alive in European competition but are big underdogs for their trip to Dublin.

“We know the size of the challenge, but we’ve earned the right to play our last 16 games in the Champions Cup, so that’s special and we have to embrace the challenge,” Scotland lock Gilchrist said in a club interview.

“The boys are really excited about the opportunity and the challenge. We want to do ourselves proud. We want to walk off that field Sunday night proud of who we are, proud of what we’ve put into the game.

Fixture

Investec Champions Cup

Leinster

09:30

5 Apr 26

Edinburgh

All Stats and Data

“What comes of that on Sunday, we’ll all be able to live with, but let’s make sure that we fire every shot, fight in every moment and walk off with our heads held high, and the result will be the result.

“Everybody in the world has written us off, probably rightly so, but we’ve got pressure on ourselves to perform and to show who we are. And what an opportunity to show who you are against a world-class team in a massive game, so that’s the challenge for us.

“There is a lot of pride at stake in how we perform. We want to make sure that we’re free in how we play, but we understand that there’s a responsibility around Sunday as well.

“It’s not just turn up and act like there’s nothing on the line. We’re going to play this match like what it is: it’s our last-16 tie the Champions Cup, a game that we want to win, 100 per cent.

“We know where we are, we’ve spoken a lot in the last few weeks about turning that around, what that takes, and there’s no quick fix.

“But the one thing that it demands is our effort, our physicality and putting together a performance that when people watch us on Sunday night, they can be proud of.”