Skinner named in Scotland squad

By Mark Stevens
16/1/19

Exeter Chiefs forward Sam Skinner has been included in a 39-man Scotland squad for the upcoming Guinness 2019 Six Nations Championship.

The 23-year-old is retained within the national ranks by Head Coach Gregor Townsend after impressing during the Autumn Test series, where he featured in three fixtures - including his debut against Fiji at Murrayfield - where he was named man-of-the-match.

Skinner forms part of a Scotland squad which also includes Stuart Hogg, who is set to join the Devon club at the start of next season, plus seven uncapped players. Injuries to Fraser Brown and George Turner have opened the door for a trio of uncapped hookers, with David Cherry (Edinburgh), Jake Kerr (Leicester Tigers) and Grant Stewart (Glasgow Warriors) rewarded for breakthrough seasons at their club sides.

They are joined by back-row Gary Graham (Newcastle Falcons) and tighthead prop D’Arcy Rae (Glasgow Warriors), with centres Sam Johnson (Glasgow Warriors) and Chris Dean (Edinburgh) the only uncapped backs.

Of the group, former Scotland U20 caps Cherry, Kerr and Dean are the only players to have no previous involvement with the senior national side, with the others selected in extended or training squads in recent seasons.

Johnson missed out on the recent November Tests through injury and Graham was an unused addition mid campaign, while Rae and Stewart have also come close to caps in previous camps as unused squad members on the 2017 and 2018 June tours respectively.

Newcastle back-row John Hardie makes his return to a Scotland squad for the first time since the 2018 Six Nations, while the selection of squad regulars Jonny Gray and Tommy Seymour puts them – selection permitting – on track to reach a half-century of Scotland caps during the championship, currently just three and four caps from the milestone.

Scotland finished last year’s championship in third place with three wins for the second time since five nations became six, with Townsend keen to see continued improvements from his side.

He said: “There’s certainly been a lot of improvement from this group of players in recent seasons and I believe there’s much more to come. They’ve a genuine desire to get better and reach their potential in what is a huge year for our sport.

“In the past 18 months we’ve played 18 Test matches and have introduced 18 new players to Test-level rugby. Once again, our squad features players aiming to take that step, which is a testimony to their performances this season and the growing strength in depth of Scottish rugby.

“We are very proud of what a number of our players have achieved since the Autumn Tests, particularly with Edinburgh and Glasgow Warriors both aiming to make the last eight of the Heineken Champions Cup for the first time and both sitting in strong positions in their respective Guinness PRO14 conferences.

“We’ve also seen some excellent performances from players representing clubs in France and England, which is a credit to their commitment and work ethic.

“It is a privilege for our players to be involved in the Guinness Six Nations, which is such a prestigious tournament and will be highly competitive once again.

“We look forward to taking on the challenge of Italy and working hard as a squad over the next two weeks to deliver a winning performance.”

Scotland will open the campaign against Italy at BT Murrayfield on Saturday 2 February, in the first of three home Tests in this year’s competition, all of which are expected to be played before capacity crowds at the nation’s largest stadium.

Scotland squad for the 2019 Six Nations

Forwards: Alex Allan, Adam Ashe, Simon Berghan, Jamie Bhatti, David Cherry, Allan Dell, Grant Gilchrist, Gary Graham, Jonny Gray, John Hardie, Jake Kerr, Stuart McInally, Willem Nel, D’Arcy Rae, Jamie Ritchie, Sam Skinner, Grant Stewart, Josh Strauss, Tim Swinson, Ben Toolis, Hamish Watson, Ryan Wilson

Backs: Chris Dean, Darcy Graham, Nick Grigg, Sam Johnson, Chris Harris, Adam Hastings, Stuart Hogg, George Horne, Pete Horne, Huw Jones, Lee Jones, Blair Kinghorn, Greig Laidlaw, Sean Maitland, Ali Price, Finn Russell, Tommy Seymour