Scotland U20 have had to make three changes to the side that beat England 24-6 last week ahead of Friday’s 6.30pm kick off against Wales in the U20 RBS 6 Nations Championship.
Head Coach John Dalziel has lost Adam Hastings, Blair Kinghorn, and Jamie Ritchie, with all three being required by their pro clubs for the weekend, a sign of just how promising this young Scottish side is.
George Taylor comes in for Hastings, starting at outside centre, with Rory Hutchinson stepping infield to fill Hastings’ 10 shirt, while Ruairi Howarth comes in at full back for Kinghorn.
In the pack Callum Huner-Hill steps into the second row, with Andrew Davidson moving from lock to blindside flanker to cover the absent Ritchie.
Scott Cummings retains the captaincy, while on the bench Stephen Ainslie and Chris Lines are set to make their Scotland U20 debuts when they come on.
Speaking ahead of the game, Dalziel said:
“We were delighted to get the win last week, but we’ve had to refocus quickly and work hard on the training pitch ahead of the Wales game to ensure that we continue to improve. There’s a lot of rugby to be played in this tournament, and we can’t rest on our laurels; we need to keep building.”
“Wales are always going to be physical and play a good brand of rugby, and, like us, confidence will be high from their victory in the first round, so we know how tough it’s going to be down there. We’ve brought a few players into the team for this weekend, but we have good depth in the squad, and have no doubt in the ability and experience of those coming in.”
Scotland U20 v Wales U20 – Friday, 18.30, Live on S4C
Scotland U20 XV:
15 Ruairi Howarth
14 Darcy Graham
13 George Taylor
12 Tom Galbraith
11 Robbie Nairn
10 Rory Hutchinson
9 Hugh Fraser
1 Murray McCallum
2 Jack Kerr
3 Callum Sheldon
4 Callum Hunter-Hill
5 Scott Cummings
6 Andrew Davidson
7 Matt Smith
8 Ally Miller
Replacements
16 Lewis Anderson
17 Goerge Thornton
18 Adam Nicol
19 Stephen Ainslie
20 Scott Burnside
21 Charlie Shiel
22 Chris Lines
23 Ben Robbins
Unavailable due to pro commitments:
Blair Kinghorn, Jamie Ritchie (both Edinburgh Rugby) and Adam Hastings (Bath Rugby).
