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Franco Smith declared it “a massive privilege” to be leading Glasgow as they prepare to play in front of their biggest-ever home crowd in the first leg of the 1872 Cup showdown with Edinburgh on Sunday.
Warriors made the decision to move the inter-city fixture away from their Scotstoun home to the 51,000-capacity Hampden Park, and close to 30,000 tickets have been sold.
Head coach Smith, who welcomes captain Kyle Steyn back into the starting XV for the first time since he suffered a leg injury in September, is relishing the showpiece occasion as his side bid to secure themselves an advantage ahead of the return fixture at Murrayfield the following weekend.
“From my personal perspective, it’s a massive privilege to be a part of it,” said the South African.
“I’m really excited. I will never take this for granted. I used to watch these derbies from afar for a long time, and to be a part of it again is a real privilege. I will always keep that dear to my heart in my life.
“To go to Hampden, from the players’ perspective, they know just as I do and the way the way we’ve anticipated for these two games that it’s going to be a huge occasion. It’s massive for the players.
“It is important to not only underline what we’ve been trying to do during the season but to prove to themselves that we’re on the right path and to be consistent in what we do against their own countrymen is obviously an important part of the puzzle.
“We’re going to be focused on what we can do well, not necessarily what Edinburgh will bring, but what we can do well. For us, playing in a massive game like this and to measure ourselves against the best other Scottish team is obviously a huge opportunity.”
Edinburgh will travel west as underdogs given that they have finished well below defending champions Glasgow in the United Rugby Championship in each of the previous two seasons, are currently five places below them, and have lost the last two stagings of the 1872 Cup.
Duhan van der Merwe, Scotland’s record try-scorer, will make his 100th appearance for Edinburgh in Sunday’s match.
“We know how tough it will be to face Glasgow away,” said head coach Sean Everitt. “They have a strong record at home, so we’ll need to be at our best to beat them.
“I’m really happy for Duhan to have got to 100 caps. He’s been such an important player for this team over the years and it’s great to see him hit the milestone against Glasgow.”
