In many ways their visit to Toulon was the perfect preparation for what confronts them this weekend as Edinburgh got off to a slow start against high class French opposition, then came roaring back in the second half to dominate proceedings.

The sequence was strikingly similar to what happened when they played Montpellier in the opening round back in October, the difference being that they completed the comeback this time and did so in some style. What happened in those opening exchanges in Toulon was, then, a reminder of the threat possessed by these teams, laden as they are with high class individuals, but having been through it once before, this time there was no trace of panic when they conceded a try in just two minutes.

“It was really calm actually,” reported Blair Kinghorn, Edinburgh’s full-back. “We all knew as a squad that we could do much better than that. Rambo (club captain Stuart McInally) took us in, had a quiet word and it was onto the next job, focus on the kick off and from there on I think our defence only got better. Obviously, we know that if we let them into our 22 they’ve got a very big big pack who are very powerful, so we knew that was going to be a challenge and you can see if you fall off tackles or get a few little things wrong against teams that good then they can expose you, but from there on out our defence only got better and we were able to shut down most of their threats.”

While they still trailed 12-8 at the interval, the match turned soon after it with Kinghorn’s try, albeit he felt centre James Johnstone did the hard work, saying: .“I think that was massive, especially coming out near the start of the second half. It meant we were on the front foot straightaway in the second half and the skill from Jimmy just to let the ball pop up into my arms was a big moment for me personally and I feel like it helped the momentum shift.”

Johnstone would then apply the finish to a counter-attack after Kinghorn released Bill Mata as they took control, the only disappointment being their failure to register a fourth try that would have provided slightly more leeway heading into this Friday’s decider since a bonus point would have meant they needed only to be prevent Montpellier from scoring four tries in Edinburgh on Friday evening and lose by seven points or fewer to go through.

In many ways, though, a winner-take-all decider on their home turf is much more clear cut, not to mention a far better position than they could initially have imagined they might be in when the draw was made and they found themselves grouped with not one, but two of the big-spending giants of French rugby. Five games in, Edinburgh have fully earned their place atop the pool, however and are entitled to take confidence into Friday’s match, not least on the back of their previous performances against the French sides, beating Toulon home and away and losing by just six points in Montpellier.

“Montpellier have a lot of world class individuals, but they’re fairly similar to Toulon in terms of their forward pack is big and powerful, so, we’ve looked at them and we’ll look at them more in detail, and it is quite helpful having played another big French team the week beforehand as well as having played them in the first game of the pool,” said Kinghorn.

Naturally there is an awareness that Vern Cotter, the former Scotland head coach, who is now in charge at Montpellier, knows a lot about the Edinburgh squad. However, the speed at which sport changes is exemplified by the fact that Kinghorn, now a leading light, had only the slightest involvement with Cotter when invited to attend a couple of Scotland training sessions while he was still at school. Much has changed in Edinburgh since Cotter departed less than two years ago.

“I think we’re expanding as a team, getting better week-on-week; our form’s getting better away from home; little details we’re starting to see every time we review games, little habits are getting better and that’s paying off when it comes to game time,” said Kinghorn.“The club’s going in a great direction and I think we’re creating more of a community feel. We had a lot of travelling support in Toulon which was brilliant. You could hear them all around the stadium, so we’re all really excited about that, but we just need to keep focused on the job in hand.”