Walder kicks Wasps into contention

Wasps have seen off Edinburgh home and away in successive weeks – next up: The game of games.

After returning from Ireland with their tails between their legs after round two of the Heineken Cup, Wasps have followed up an edgy win at Murrayfield with another victory over the Scots at Adams Park this afternoon to claw their way back into contention.

With Leinster shocked in Castres on Friday night, it means the Irish and English champions will meet at Twickenham on January 17 with absolutely everything on the line.

And Wasps will be looking forward to it.

The scoreline doesn't show it, but Wasps were within a whisper of routing Edinburgh this afternoon. They were magnificent at the breakdown, controlled their own set piece and some of the backs moves ripped gaping holes in the visitors' defences.

The only thing they didn't do was score the hatful of tries their play deserved.

But Wasps are simmering nicely now, and they still have another month to come to the boil.

Danny Cipriani was restricted to a place among the replacements after picking up a cold in midweek, but it hardly mattered, Dave Walder stepped into his ten shirt and delivered a masterclass.

He opened the scoring with a classy try after 11 minutes, added the conversion himself before locking down the victory with four second-half penalties out of four to set up next month's group-defining game with Leinster.

An impeccably-observed minutes' silence for Eileen Dallaglio, who lost her battle with cancer recently, proceeded kick-off, and Wasps began the match suitably stirred.

They made the first inroads after five minutes when Mark van Gisbergen pounced on a loose ball on the half way line and slipped between two to set Wasps on the front foot.

When the ball found its way to Tom Voyce via Dave Walder, the winger accelerated inside until Hugo Southwell got hands on him on the 22.

Retreating from an offside position, Edinburgh forced the turnover and attack fizzled out.

It was a marker though and in the next few minutes Wasps flexed their muscles; Tim Payne knocked the ball out of Jim Hamilton's hands with a seismic collision, Josh Lewsey's strong handoff sent flanker Scott Newlands flying and Waldouck charged down Phil Godman's attempted clearance.

The Scots were rattled and after 11 minutes the breakthrough came when Dave Walder burst through a hole in the Edinburgh line ala' Cipriani.

The fly half veered away from full back Southwell and a second later was diving over to put his side 5-0 up.

The conversion followed and Walder and Wasps were off to the start they desperately wanted.

A second try was on offer when van Gisbergen, who was on fire, and Lewsey ran at Edinburgh after 15 minutes and so eager were Wasps to go for the throat that when play was moved forward for a home penalty Eoin Reddan's tap and go left his team-mates flat footed 20 yards behind him.

Facing a wall of white shirts all by himself, the scrum half had to turn quickly on his heels and carry the ball back towards support.

When Edinburgh finally did get some territory after 24 minutes, Godman was swallowed up by James Haskell and Tom Rees, and crowd of bodies piled in and moment later the ball popped out to Walder, who kicked clear.

But it was only a temporary reprieve and within a minute Southwell was diving over in the corner after Waldouck's missed tackle in midfield had left Wasps outnumbered down Paul Sackey's wing.

The conversion went wide, so Wasps remained in front - but after 25 minutes of some of their most exhilarating rugby this season, when they scored once and could have had a couple more tries, a two-point lead was scant reward.

Another try-scoring opportunity went begging just after the half-hour, when Wasps had a three-man overlap but allowed themselves to be shepherded out of play, and another layer of gloss was taken off the half after 35 minutes when van Gisbergen had to leave the field after making a jarring tackle on the half-way line.

But his exit precipitated the entrance of the super-confident Aussie Lachlan Mitchell, and his first involvement was to take a box kick, step inside the chaser and launch a counter-attack that ended when Lewsey beat his man and chipped through.

Sackey, Waldouck and Southwell were in hot pursuit, but the bounce evaded them all and the ball rolled agonisingly beyond the dead-ball line.

It was another point-scoring opportunity that failed to produce, and the last kick of the half emphasised that such profligacy is dangerous in Europe's premier competition as Godman landed a penalty to put the Scots 8-7 up at the interval.

Wasps reacted by bringing on Cipriani for Waldouck, but Walder retained the fly half spot and kicking duties and after 42 minutes he repaid the vote of confidence with a 40m penalty to put his side back in front.

The pattern of the first half continued though, with Wasps playing some sparkling rugby without reward. One attack, kept alive by incredible handling from Simon Shaw and Mitchell, swung left to right and back again, where the line was gaping after Cipriani's long pass.

But Voyce, with Betsen outside him and expecting a simple run in for his first try in the black and gold shirt, went alone and was tackled a few yards short.

It was left to Man of the Match Walder to finally add to the score with his second penalty of the half after 49 minutes, a third followed in the 63rd minute and although Godman replied for Edinburgh, Walder's fourth successful kick of the half settled it for the hosts.