Duhan van der Merwe is being outscored by his hooker brother and they could meet in the URC play-offs

The big winger was looking to get among the tries against the bottom side in the United Rugby Championship but found opportunities limited against obdurate opponents in the tight confines of Hive Stadium.

Zebre stifled Edinburgh for long periods before crumbling in the final quarter but van der Merwe didn’t see much of the ball and never had the chance to go full throttle as he looked to add to the three tries he has scored in the URC this season. It seems a paltry amount given his prolific form for Scotland and, to make matters worse, his older brother Akker is surging ahead of him in the try charts. The Bulls hooker scored against Glasgow this weekend and now has nine in the league this season and only the Warriors’ Johnny Matthews is above him, with 12.

The hookers are leading the way and it was Edinburgh No 2 Ewan Ashman who got the ball rolling against Zebre, scoring a brace in the first half on a night when four of the six tries came from front-row forwards. While happy with the win, van der Merwe was a little miffed not to be on the scoresheet.

“Sometimes when you play a team below you you’re trying to get more on the ball and get a try but when it’s not your day, it’s not your day,” he said. “The forwards did a really good job, they were unbelievable and us backs will have to pick it up. You have to give credit to Zebre. They’re sitting bottom of the log but they are a hard team to beat and showed that on the weekend.

“Sometimes you see the opportunities and I don’t get the ball and I get frustrated but that’s where I need to be the better player and not get frustrated and lose my head because I’m part of the team. If I see these opportunities I’m going to back myself and call it because I wouldn’t call it if I didn’t think I could score. Sometimes it’s a bit frustrating but it is what it is, I guess.”

Duhan has been keeping a fraternal eye on Akker’s exploits and is quick to point out that most of his brother’s tries are coming off the back of lineout mauls. There’s a chance the siblings could meet in the play-offs and that is a match-up Duhan would relish, more so because Akker was missing when Edinburgh beat the Bulls at home in November.

“He’s got more than me, I think he’s sitting second on the URC,” acknowledged the winger. “It’s all maul, I can do that as well…

“He’s been getting stuck into me saying he’s scored more but I just said potentially a double or a hat-trick and we’re all square again. But nah, fair play. It would be absolutely brilliant if we go down there to play against them. Unfortunately I couldn’t play against him when we beat them here so anything can happen in the next couple of weeks and it’s all in our hands.”

Edinburgh still have a fair bit of work to do to make the play-offs, starting with this Friday’s home game against Munster which is heading for a sell-out. They then travel to Italy for their final regular season match against Benetton on June 1. Sean Everitt’s side are seventh at the moment, level on points with Benetton but above them by virtue of having won more games. Four points below them, and just outside the play-off positions, are Connacht and the Lions, with Ospreys four points further back but with an easier run-in.

There’s a confidence in the Edinburgh camp that they will make the top eight and that throws up the possibility of an away quarter-final against Glasgow Warriors. The spoils were shared when the sides met twice over Christmas with each team winning the home derby but van der Merwe would back his team to go to Scotstoun and win in the play-offs.

“Look, playing against Glasgow is always brilliant,” he said. “Away to Scotstoun is never going to be easy but I back ourselves against anyone to be honest. If we have to go to Bulls, back to Munster or Glasgow or Leinster I back ourselves but, yeah, we fancy our chances at Scotstoun.”

The tries may not be flowing at club level at the moment but van der Merwe was joint top scorer in the Six Nations following a double against Wales and an historic hat-trick in the Calcutta Cup win over England. He’s now up to 26 for his country, one short of Stuart Hogg’s all-time Scotland record. The summer tour would offer up an opportunity to break it if Gregor Townsend decides to select the winger. The national coach will name his squad next month and is expected to use the four-game trip to North and South America as a chance to try out some younger and fringe players. Van der Merwe is keen to go and baulked at the suggestion he might want the summer off.

“No. I love playing for Scotland,” he said. “I feel like by playing more I get better and better. I love the environment and it’s something I want to be a part of. If given the opportunity I’d love to go. Like I said before, I’ve done my pre-season in the World Cup and feel my body is good to go for the next two or three years. I’ll do another one after that but I’d love to go.”