Grant Gilchrist does not hold back in honest assessment of Edinburgh Rugby

Sean Everitt’s side looked comfortable for long spells of Saturday’s match against the Bulls, only for poor decision-making and individual errors to prove costly as they went down 22-16. The capital club have now lost their opening two United Rugby Championship matches despite holding the lead both times, and Gilchrist concedes they will need to find a quick fix before taking on the Lions in Johannesburg this weekend.

The Scotland cap said: “When we get to 13-12 with a metre to go to score, then we end up conceding seven, that was a huge moment. The maul five metres out when the backs joined early was another huge moment that you just can't do at this level. You can't pass up on those chances and expect to win. I'd need to look back at it but some of it is on the individual and some of it we went off plan.

“When we got to a metre out, we started throwing long passes and we'd get knocked back to 5m again, whereas last week we were really efficient in that area - and were over the course of last season as well.

“It's about individuals taking responsibility. Collectively we have to stick to the plan and if individuals are going off that, it costs the team. We have to look at that and make sure we're all on the right page because we need to win next weekend.

“It's making sure when we get in [try-scoring] positions, we are really ruthless and we don't give oxygen to these teams that can hurt you from distance.”

One positive for Edinburgh was their scrum that came out on top in the physical battle with the Bulls. “Your set-piece is going to get a stern examination but we stood up and that was one of the more positive aspects of the game,” added Gilchrist. “We'll have to tidy up some areas and make sure we get better next week because we want to have a dominant set-piece and generate a platform to play or win penalties.”