Autumn Series 2021: Scotland

[septic 9]

Jones is a weird one. Really picked up form again last year and having to fight his way past Harris will be good for him in the long term.

He is perfectly suited to Quins style but needs time to adjust, while we’ve already got 3 quality centres fighting for a couple of spots. Taking the Autumn as a chance for more gametime (while Marchant and possibly Lynagh are away) hopefully he’ll get a good chance to stake a claim ahead of the 6 nations.

would need those 2 to be rested after the AIs - don't think there are any premiership fixtures during them, maybe one

[Mikey Brown]

Jones is a weird one. Really picked up form again last year and having to fight his way past Harris will be good for him in the long term.

He is perfectly suited to Quins style but needs time to adjust, while we’ve already got 3 quality centres fighting for a couple of spots. Taking the Autumn as a chance for more gametime (while Marchant and possibly Lynagh are away) hopefully he’ll get a good chance to stake a claim ahead of the 6 nations.

would need those 2 to be rested after the AIs - don't think there are any premiership fixtures during them, maybe one

The Lions aren't being rested this Autumn either. I'll just shut up altogether.

[Mikey Brown]

Autumn Nations Series Squad

Loosehead
Rory Sutherland – Worcester Warriors – 16 caps
Jamie Bhatti – Glasgow Warriors – 18 caps
Pierre Schoeman – Edinburgh Rugby – uncapped

Hooker
Fraser Brown – Glasgow Warriors – 54 caps
George Turner – Glasgow Warriors – 17 caps
Stuart McInally – Edinburgh Rugby – 40 caps
Ewan Ashman – Sale Sharks - uncapped

Tighthead
Zander Fagerson – Glasgow Warriors – 38 caps
Murray McCallum – Glasgow Warriors – 3 caps
Oli Kebble – Glasgow Warriors – 8 caps (numbers would suggest he's being viewed as a TH?)

Lock
Sam Skinner – Exeter Chiefs – 12 caps
Grant Gilchrist – Edinburgh Rugby – 45 caps
Jamie Hodgson – Edinburgh Rugby – uncapped
Marshall Sykes – Edinburgh Rugby – uncapped

Flanker
Jamie Ritchie – Edinburgh Rugby – 27 caps
Rob Harley – Glasgow Warriors – 22 caps
Luke Crosbie – Edinburgh Rugby – uncapped
Dylan Richardson – Cell C Sharks – uncapped
Rory Darge – Glasgow Warriors – uncapped
Hamish Watson – Edinburgh Rugby – 41 caps

Number 8
Matt Fagerson – Glasgow Warriors – 13 caps
Nick Haining – Edinburgh Rugby – 8 caps
Josh Bayliss – Bath Rugby - uncapped (well he's playing there for Bath right now)

Scrumhalf
Ali Price – Glasgow Warriors – 42 caps
George Horne – Glasgow Warriors – 14 caps
Jamie Dobie – Glasgow Warriors – uncapped

Flyhalf
Finn Russell – Racing 92 – 55 caps
Adam Hastings – Gloucester Rugby – 23 caps
Ross Thompson – Glasgow Warriors – uncapped

Centre
Sam Johnson – Glasgow Warriors – 18 caps
Matt Scott – Leicester Tigers – 39 caps
Sione Tuipulotu – Glasgow Warriors – uncapped
Chris Harris – Gloucester Rugby – 28 caps
Huw Jones – Harlequins – 31 caps
Mark Bennett – Edinburgh Rugby – 22 caps

Wing
Duhan van de Merwe – Worcester Warriors – 10 caps
Darcy Graham – Edinburgh Rugby – 19 caps
Kyle Steyn – Glasgow Warriors – 1 cap
Rufus McLean – Glasgow Warriors – uncapped
Damien Hoyland – Edinburgh Rugby – 4 caps

Fullback
Stuart Hogg – Exeter Chiefs – 85 caps
Blair Kinghorn – Edinburgh Rugby – 25 caps

[Big D]

I've binned social media. Is there a list of those injured? I like Davidson ahead of Hodgson but not listed.

[Mikey Brown]

I've binned social media. Is there a list of those injured? I like Davidson ahead of Hodgson but not listed.

Notable omissions nicked from elsewhere. A few in there I think might have been worth a look if available.

Simon Berghan (Believe he’s injured)
Magnus Bradbury (has come into a bit of form lately, could be on hand if they need some injury cover later on)
Dave Cherry
Scott Cummings (hand injury)
Cole Forbes
Jonny Gray (think he’s still injured, hasn’t featured for Exeter this season yet)
Cameron Henderson
James Lang (although got injured this past weekend)
Jaco VDW
Duncan Weir
WP Nel (perhaps beginning of the end for his Scotland career?)
Cameron Redpath (ACL is still busted)
Scott Steele (probably deemed surplus due to G Horne being fit again)
Duncan Taylor
Ben Vellacott
Sean Maitland
Alex Craig?
Andrew Davidson?

[switchskier]

Quite a weird squad. Very thin in some positions (tighthead and lock).

No Vellacot is strange to me. Don't think that anyone anticipated the return of big bad bob and Haining has been so far off the radar that I'd forgotten he even existed. Crosbie at flanker feels a weird one too.

[septic 9]

I've binned social media. Is there a list of those injured? I like Davidson ahead of Hodgson but not listed.

Notable omissions nicked from elsewhere. A few in there I think might have been worth a look if available.

Simon Berghan (Believe he’s injured)
Magnus Bradbury (has come into a bit of form lately, could be on hand if they need some injury cover later on)
Dave Cherry
Scott Cummings (hand injury)
Cole Forbes
Jonny Gray (think he’s still injured, hasn’t featured for Exeter this season yet)
Cameron Henderson
James Lang (although got injured this past weekend)
Jaco VDW
Duncan Weir
WP Nel (perhaps beginning of the end for his Scotland career?)
Cameron Redpath (ACL is still busted)
Scott Steele (probably deemed surplus due to G Horne being fit again)
Duncan Taylor
Ben Vellacott
Sean Maitland
Alex Craig?
Andrew Davidson?

Davison went off after half an hour a fortnight ago, didn't feature last week, so I presume injured.
Craig I don't think has featured this season.
Henderson has managed 28mins on 2 sub appearances. Not enough
J Gray had surgery on a shoulder

so that's the locks!

I think we are simply moving on from Maitland, shame but father time etc
Ditto Nel
Berghan is injured, not played this season

VDW and Lang both crocked last Edin game. Not sure about Lang but VDW looked to be out for a while
Bradbury has played one game and a bit. We have options, he needs to nail an Edin place and show consistency

[Cameo]

Lock is the only real worry for me. Not a huge amount we can do about it but will put pressure on the lineout. I wonder if Harley is being thought of as a bench option there.

On the plus side, it is a real chance for Skinner to show if he is as good as people hoped.

Edit: Bayliss can play lock too can't he? If so, I imagine they will be aiming mainly to start Gilchrist and Skinner with locks cum 6s on the bench.

[Scottish Caley Fan]

There is a very good article on The Offside Line titled something along the lines of "10 things taken from the AI squad announcement"

It is well worth a read but 2 interesting things I read, Cameron Henderson is injured (I didn't know that. It also lists the other injuries, quoted by GT himself) and the other thing, it sounds like Ben Vellacott is still in the mix as injury cover.

I fully recommend reading the article or maybe watching Gregor's interview on Scottish Rugby YouTube channel because I think the article is a lowdown on what was said on that.

[septic 9]

Edit: Bayliss can play lock too can't he? If so, I imagine they will be aiming mainly to start Gilchrist and Skinner with locks cum 6s on the bench.

no. He is a 6/8, but not an 8 like Mata or a 6 like Harley - these guys would dwarf Bayliss's 6'3". More like Richie but not quite as tall
Good player though - fought very hard in the Bath thrashing by Sarries, one of only a couple who could hold their heads up

[Mikey Brown]

I would have thought he was taller than that, but certainly he’s not a big lump and was only put at lock for Bath through desperation I think.

Not an 8 by trade either really but he’s very mobile and got good ball skills so it seems a much better fit than lock. Harley is no lock really but he’s far better suited to doing the grunt work in the tight 5 if it comes to it.

[Which Tyler]

He's comfortable on either flank, and can do a job at 8.
He's one of those nuts and bolts players with no particular USP of his own, but works his arse off, and lets other people get on with their specialities.

[Cameo]

Cheers - just looked up some clips. Looks to have a decent amount of pace which is a nice bonus.

[Mikey Brown]

Fraser Brown and Mark Bennet now unavailable for the Tonga game. Was keen to see Bennet get another go in a Scotland shirt and this may well be a big opportunity missed.

Cherry and Bradbury (?) come in.

[whatisthejava]

I really want Bradbury to kick on and be that 6/8 cover we need but ever since that night out a few years ago he has been up and down. Possibly he needs a few years down south to mature a bit

[Mikey Brown]

Graham; Steyn; Tuipulotu, Johnson; McLean; Kinghorn, Price (co-capt); Schoeman, Turner, Z Fagerson; Hodgson, Harley; Ritchie (co-capt), Watson, M Fagerson.

Replacements: McInally, Bhatti, Kebble, Sykes, Crosbie, Haining, Dobie, Thompson

Well that's definitely a strange old team but there's some exciting names in there.

6:2 split is interesting. I guess there's a lot of cover between the starting backs.

Has Tuipolotu earned a shot? I've seen basically no Scottish club rugby this season.

[septic 9]

Graham; Steyn; Tuipulotu, Johnson; McLean; Kinghorn, Price (co-capt); Schoeman, Turner, Z Fagerson; Hodgson, Harley; Ritchie (co-capt), Watson, M Fagerson.

Replacements: McInally, Bhatti, Kebble, Sykes, Crosbie, Haining, Dobie, Thompson

Well that's definitely a strange old team but there's some exciting names in there.

6:2 split is interesting. I guess there's a lot of cover between the starting backs.

Has Tuipolotu earned a shot? I've seen basically no Scottish club rugby this season.

he is the best available and fit option for the 13 shirt. he was partly at fault for one of Leinster's tries last week, but he has been very decent otherwise. Smallish guy who can do crash ball pretty well, good hands, smart player.
Bennett might have got the nod if not injured.

Kinghorn getting practice at 10 for Edinburgh, not on the same level as Thomson has been. Poor selection IMHO

[switchskier]

I don't really like that team at all:

- if you're going to go with Glasgow SH, centres and wings why not give Thomson an introduction to international rugby alongside all of his teammates?

- Harley has been a great servant but picking him in the second row feels odd. Sykes has more long term potential than Hodgson I feel who I think is one of those great club players but I struggle to see a long international career for (still, good for him)

- Playing Watson, on his first game back, feels unnecessary. Let's have him fit and firing for bigger tests. There are young backrows champing at the bit. We're also relying a lot on him to carry in that pack.

- Crosbie feels a bit like he's next in line rather than earned it on this season's performances, though I did miss his motm game

- Haining? Where's he come from? Perplexing selection when there are backs available that can add something off the bench

- Graham will be fine at fullback because he's got the skills. But he's not playing there regularly and Edinburgh have actively tried to avoid putting him there. Appreciate there arent a lot of options though.

[Big D]

- Playing Watson, on his first game back, feels unnecessary. Let's have him fit and firing for bigger tests. There are young backrows champing at the bit. We're also relying a lot on him to carry in that pack.

Lobbing in him v Australia, SA and Japan with no game time behind him seems sub optimal. Once they decided to hold him and others back he had to play this weekend.

[whatisthejava]

I reckon they want Thompson on to close the game out.

I think it could be a really interesting exciting game lacking in defense but with everything else

[General Zod]

I reckon they want Thompson on to close the game out.

I think it could be a really interesting exciting game lacking in defense but with everything else

That’s what I reckon. I think Scotland will probably be quite a few (12+) up early doors, but not put in a great defensive shift.

Hopefully, Tonga will bring something to the party so we don’t turn up against Australia thinking we’ll ease ourselves into the game. Or are we more professional than that nowadays?!

[Scottish Caley Fan]

Very interested to see what damage Rufus can do and I have a feeling we'll see wee Darcy making a few runs downfield from his FB position, meaning no darn kick tennis .

So happy for all the debutants, hopefully some or all can show up well.

Any word on Dylan Richardson omission though? He is available as he has been posting Insta stories of Edinburgh.

[septic 9]

Very interested to see what damage Rufus can do and I have a feeling we'll see wee Darcy making a few runs downfield from his FB position, meaning no darn kick tennis .

So happy for all the debutants, hopefully some or all can show up well.

Any word on Dylan Richardson omission though? He is available as he has been posting Insta stories of Edinburgh.

no idea. I would say its just about balance and getting Watson a game before we play Aus, plus Richie covers 7. Then I see a 6/2 bench split with Crosbie (also a 7 but who should be a 6) and Haining. I think its simply getting Haining on the park as well as he like Watson has played no rugby this season AFAIK. Crosbie in case both are shit? Dunno. Back row and subs a weird selection in a way

Richardson should be behind Darge anyway. Darge is going to be a real star. I hope he would have been picked if he hadn't picked up an injury last weekend

[septic 9]

I reckon they want Thompson on to close the game out.

I think it could be a really interesting exciting game lacking in defense but with everything else

afraid its all about "proving" Kinghorn is a 10.
It' will either come off against Tonga 2nds and be declared the second coming, or he will make a total arse of it and should be subbed after 30mins (won't/wouldn't be). Hard to say which most likely

[Mikey Brown]

I wonder if it's just a matter of not wanting to throw Thompson in to start, and Kinghorn being the only other player available playing 10? It's not very convincing though, and it does seem weird to use a full international as a place for a player to (re)learn a position. It's potentially going to be a very inexperienced team on the field by the end of this game, particularly in the backs.

If Haining hasn't played all season it seems equally strange he's there at all, but I guess he's had enough big performances in the past (putting aside all his lacklustre ones) to have convinced GT he's a must-pick.

Crosbie having got here by default rather than showing any great form is a bit of a shame. It felt like him and Bradbury would be further down the line by now, but the last few seasons doesn't seem to have done much for either.