Scotland U20s head coach Carl Hogg is excited to blood new talent in his squad for the 2019 Six Nations Championship.
He has named a 32-man squad ahead of their opener against Italy on Friday night at Netherdale, with 20 men set to make their debut at U20 level.
The group includes 17 players who have progressed through the Fosroc Scottish Rugby Academy and five youngsters who are eligible through the Scottish Qualified programme.
Hogg’s side will be hoping to begin with a winning start against Italy, who took a 45-31 win when the two teams met at Stadio della Vittoria in 2018.
Some of the more experienced names in the squad include Jack Hill, Ross Bundy, Kyle McGhie, Murray Scott, Nathan Chamberlain, Robbie McCallum, Jacob Lineen and Matt Davidson, who have all previously represented Scotland at age-grade levels.
Scotland finished bottom of the table in last year’s Championship, taking one win – 24-17 against England – in their five matches.
Hogg, a former Worcester Warriors head coach, is heading into his first Six Nations with the age-group side after being appointed in October.
He said: “We’ve chosen a well-rounded squad with talented players across the board.
“There are plenty of young, exciting players stepping up to U20 level for the first time in their careers and we hope that they can make a positive impact on the upcoming Six Nations Championship.
“We’ve prepared well and the focus is fully on facing Italy next week. There’s still work to be done but we’ve got every confidence in this year’s squad.”
Tickets for the game against Italy U20s at Netherdale (Friday, 7.30pm kick-off) are available at scottishrugby.org
Forwards
Andrew Nimmo (Glasgow Hawks)*, Murphy Walker (Stirling County)*, Sam Grahamslaw (Leicester Tigers), Will Hurd (Cardiff Metropolitan University), Euan McLaren (Ayr)*, Angus Fraser (Glasgow Hawks)*, Ewan Ashman (Sale Sharks), Finlay Scott (Jed-Forest)*, Cameron Henderson (Stirling County)*, Charlie Jupp (Heriot’s)*, Ewan Johnson (Racing 92), Teddy Leatherbarrow (Sale Sharks), Connor Boyle (Watsonians)*, Jack Hill (Durham Univeristy), Jack Mann (Edinburgh Accies)*, Cristen van Niekerk (Lions), Ross Bundy (Stirling County)
Backs
Kyle McGhie (Musselburgh), Roan Frostwick (Currie Chieftains)*, Murray Scott (Watsonians), Ross Thompson (Glasgow Hawks)*, Nathan Chamberlain (Bristol Bears), Andrew Jardine (Melrose)*, Cameron Anderson (Wasps), Grant Hughes (Stirling County)*, Robbie McCallum (Complutense Cisneros), Ollie Smith (Ayr)*, Jacob Lineen (Durham University), Matt Davidson (London Scottish), Jack Blain (Heriot’s)*, Rory McMichael (Heriot’s)*, Rufus McLean (Watsonians)*
*Denotes Fosroc Scottish Rugby Academy Supported Player
