Ben Cairns' consolation try could not mask Edinburgh?s inferiority as Stade Francais got their Heineken Cup campaign off the ground with a thumping bonus-point victory.

Edinburgh have now lost three matches on the bounce and were no match for the two-time runners-up, who lined up with former Gunner Hugo Southwell at full-back.

Converted tries from Julien Arias and Sergio Parisse put the hosts 14-0 to the good after just nine minutes and they were home and dry when Julien Dupuy notched his third conversion, after Pascal Pape touched down.

The hosts were 28-0 up and cruising before the break when Lionel Beauxis converted his own try and Edinburgh looked to be on the wrong end of a thrashing when a Noel Oelschig penalty increased the lead to 31.

The Parisian giants took their foot off the pedal in the second half but the visitors could make little impact on the game until Cairns finally gave the travelling Gunners faithful something to shout about.

But there was no disputing Stade Francais' dominance as they laid down an early marker with a convincing win on home soil.