New recruits named for Scottish Building Society pre-season friendly

3 Sep 2026

Edinburgh Rugby will field several of the summer’s new recruits to face Ulster in tomorrow night’s Scottish Building Society pre-season friendly at Hive Stadium (4 September, kick-off 7.45pm) – live on Premier Sports.

Head Coach Sean Everitt has selected two XVs, with both units set to see 40 minutes of action as the capital side kick-off the 2026/27 campaign at home.

Summer signings Alec Hepburn (loosehead), James Grayson (stand-off) and Geordie Gwynn (outside centre) all start, with Kienan Higgins (centre) set to feature in the second half.

There are places in the 30-man squad for several of the Scotland U20 players who impressed at this summer’s Junior World Cup in Georgia, where Scotland secured a fifth-place finish. Jamie Stewart (loosehead), Christian Lindsay (lock), Jack Utterson (back-row), Sam Byrd (lock/back-row) and Rory McHaffie (back three) all feature.

There is also a place in the squad for 18-year-old NTP (National Talent Pathway) back-row/lock James Dalrymple, a product of Melrose RFC, who is set to feature in the second half.

Tickets are still available for the pre-season match-up, while supporters can also watch live on Premier Sports 2.

Head Coach Sean Everitt said: “We’re delighted to be back in front of our home support after 16 weeks away, and it’s exciting to see how both groups take on the challenge tomorrow night.

“We’ve got some of our summer recruits featuring, along with plenty of exciting young players in the mix – some of them getting their first taste of action at senior level, which is fantastic for their development.

“We’re looking forward to seeing the work we’ve put in throughout pre-season come to fruition, and it’ll be great to see the ideas our new coaching team have been working on come to life out on the pitch.”

Edinburgh Rugby team to face Ulster at Hive Stadium in the Scottish Building Society pre-season friendly
Friday 4 September (kick-off 7.45pm) – live on Premier Sports

15. Piers O’Conor

14. Fin Doyle
13. Geordie Gwynn
12. Mosese Tuipulotu
11. Wes Goosen

10. James Grayson
9. Hector Patterson

1. Alec Hepburn
2. Harri Morris
3. Jamie Stewart
4. Christian Lindsay
5. Glen Young CAPTAIN
6. Ollie Duncan
7. Jack Utterson
8. Tom Currie

Second-half XV

James Whitcombe, Jerry Blyth-Lafferty, Paul Hill, Euan McVie, Callum Hunter-Hill, Sam Byrd, James Dalrymple, Tom Dodd, Conor McAlpine, Ross Thompson, Rory McHaffie, Kienan Higgins, Matt Currie, Harry Paterson, Jack Brown.

Unavailable: Ewan Ashman (achilles), Rob Carmichael (concussion), Patrick Harrison (back), Dylan Richardson (groin), Duhan van der Merwe (ankle), Luke Crosbie (hamstring), Grant Gilchrist (bicep), Rhys Litterick (achilles), Ben Vellacott (shoulder), Marshall Sykes (shoulder), Charlie McCaig (knee), Connor Boyle (knee), Ben Muncaster (knee/ankle).