Scotland squad named for August camp
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Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend will take a 41-man Scotland squad into a two-day camp in St Andrews this Sunday.
The national squad will begin the 2017/18 season against Samoa at Murrayfield this November, the only match for which tickets are still available in the Autumn Tests, a er the New Zealand and Australia matches sold out early last month (July).
Among the group are seven uncapped players, five of whom have developed through the Scottish Rugby Academy.
Back-row Matt Fagerson – an academy player aligned to Glasgow Warriors – and Edinburgh Rugby wing Darcy Graham recently helped Scotland U20 to a highest-ever finish of fifth in the World Rugby Under 20 Championship in June.
They are joined by fellow academy graduates back-row Jamie Ritchie (Edinburgh Rugby), lock Scott Cummings and prop Jamie Bhatti (both Glasgow Warriors), as well as Edinburgh Rugby pair Phil Burleigh (centre) and Anton Bresler (lock), who are available to represent Scotland on residency grounds this autumn.
The squad also welcomes the return of five players from the British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, three of whom missed the entirety of Scotland’s summer tour – Greig Laidlaw (Clermont Auvergne), Lions’ top try-scorer Tommy Seymour and Stuart Hogg (both Glasgow Warriors).
Hogg is part of a group of six injured players – which includes Fraser Brown (Glasgow Warriors), Allan Dell (Edinburgh Rugby), David Denton (Worcester Warriors), Jonny Gray (Glasgow Warriors) and Rob Harley (Glasgow Warriors) – who have also been invited to attend the camp.
Injured Toulouse lock Richie Gray (back) has been excused from travelling to St Andrews in order to aid his recovery with his club.
Scotland squad for 2017 August camp:
BACKS
Not considered through injury: Mark Bennett (Edinburgh Rugby), Alasdair Dickinson (Edinburgh Rugby), Richie Gray (Toulouse), Rory Sutherland (Edinburgh)