Six players added to Scotland squad ahead of Calcutta Cup clash

Zander Fagerson trained with the squad in Gala on Friday, but hasn't recovered sufficiently

Tim Visser ready for Scotland v England
Tim Visser is one of six players added today [Sunday] to the Scotland squad ahead of next Saturday's Calcutta Cup clash against England. Image: Craig Watson -www.craigwatson.co.uk

SIX players have been added to the Scotland squad ahead of next Saturday’s Calcutta Cup clash against England at BT Murrayfield, including a triumvirate of high-profile English based players in Harlequins winger Tim Visser, Gloucester centre Matt Scott and Sale Sharks number eight Josh Strauss.

Scott had just returned from an ankle injury when the initial squad was announced, while Visser and Strauss simply didn’t make the cut.

Edinburgh’s WP Nel returns from a broken arm sustained in November to increase head coach Gregor Townsend’s options at tight-head prop; and second-row Tim Swinson, who has been out with a broken hand, also gets the call after managing 69 minutes for Glasgow Warriors on Friday night.

Uncapped Glasgow Warriors hooker James Malcolm is the sixth addition to the squad. There is no Zander Fagerson, who trained with the squad in Gala on Friday but hasn’t recovered sufficiently from a foot injury to be a realistic contender for selection in six days’ time.


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The new faces replace Saracens centre Duncan Taylor (head) and Toulouse lock Richie Gray (calf), who are yet to recover from the injuries which kept them out of the opening two games of the championship, as well as Magnus Bradbury, Nathan Fowles, Murray McCallum (all Edinburgh Rugby) and D’arcy Rae (Glasgow Warriors).

Lee Jones (Glasgow Warriors) and Neil Cochrane (Edinburgh Rugby) will remain with their clubs to complete the graduated return to play protocols after sustaining head injuries at the weekend.

Currie Chieftains scrum-half Charlie Shiel and Edinburgh wing Darcy Graham have also been invited to train with the squad on Monday and Tuesday.

Scotland NatWest 6 Nations squad  – 

BACKS (16)  – 

Mark Bennett (Edinburgh Rugby) – 20 caps

Nick Grigg (Glasgow Warriors) – 1 cap

Chris Harris (Newcastle Falcons) – 2 caps

Stuart Hogg (Glasgow Warriors) – 57 caps

Pete Horne (Glasgow Warriors) – 30 caps

Ruaridh Jackson (Glasgow Warriors) – 32 caps

Huw Jones (Glasgow Warriors) – 13 caps

Blair Kinghorn (Edinburgh Rugby) – uncapped

Greig Laidlaw (ASM Clermont Auvergne) – 60 caps

Sean Maitland (Saracens) – 31 caps

Ali Price (Glasgow Warriors) – 13 caps

Henry Pyrgos (Glasgow Warriors) – 27 caps

Finn Russell (Glasgow Warriors) – 34 caps

Tommy Seymour (Glasgow Warriors) – 41 caps

Matt Scott (Gloucester) – 39 caps

Tim Visser (Harlequins) – 33 caps

FORWARDS (20)  – 

John Barclay CAPTAIN (Scarlets) – 68 caps

Simon Berghan (Edinburgh Rugby) – 6 caps

Jamie Bhatti (Glasgow Warriors) – 5 caps

David Denton (Worcester Warriors) – 36 caps

Cornell Du Preez (Edinburgh Rugby) – 6 caps

Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh Rugby) – 20 caps

Jonny Gray (Glasgow Warriors) – 40 caps

Luke Hamilton (Leicester Tigers) – 1 cap

Rob Harley (Glasgow Warriors) – 20 caps

Scott Lawson (Newcastle Falcons) – 47 caps

James Malcolm (Glasgow Warriors) – uncapped

Stuart McInally (Edinburgh Rugby) – 14 caps

Willem Nel (Edinburgh Rugby) – 19 caps

Gordon Reid (London Irish) – 29 caps

Josh Strauss (Sale Sharks) – 14 caps

Tim Swinson (Glasgow Warriors) – 33 caps

Ben Toolis (Edinburgh Rugby) – 9 caps

Hamish Watson (Edinburgh Rugby) – 17 caps

Jon Welsh (Newcastle Falcons) – 12 caps

Ryan Wilson (Glasgow Warriors) – 34 caps


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About David Barnes 3664 Articles
David has worked as a freelance rugby journalist since 2004 covering every level of the game in Scotland for publications including he Herald/Sunday Herald, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The Scotsman/Scotland on Sunday/Evening News, The Daily Record, The Daily Mail/Mail on Sunday and The Sun.