A NUMBER of young players showed that they are ready for the RBS Six Nations at under-20 level which starts next week with good performances in a training match last night at BT Murrayfield.
The Scotland under-20s begin their tournament away to France next Saturday, February 7 and in this useful exercise they took on the Club XV.
In the first half the age-grade side, who are coached by Sean Lineen, played some great stuff and their forwards and backs linked really well.
The likes of captain for the night Jamie Ritchie and Magnus Bradbury looked composed in the back-row while in George Horne, younger brother of Scotland cap Peter, they have a real buzz bomb of energy at scrum-half.
The youngsters, who scored two tries and 18 points in the first half, tailed off a bit in the second before winning 30-17.
And certainly in the way the Club XV played for 20 minutes after half-time, with a much better tempo and zip to their game, will have given their head coach Phil Smith before their match against Ireland on Friday, February 6 in Glasgow.
Horne gave his side the lead after just five minutes with a penalty and then there was a long stoppage in play while Callum Templeton of Ayr, playing second-row for the Club XV, was treated on the pitch for an ankle injury.
He had to go off as a result and in the 18th minute the under-20s scored the first try of the night with a lovely jinking run by full-back Ruairi Howarth, of Edinburgh Rugby and Gala, saw him go over. Horne converted and it was 10-0.
Horne blotted his copybook slightly three minutes later with a missed penalty, but before the break they scored another try through second-row Scott Cummings and Horne kicked another penalty.
At 18-0 down at the interval the Club XV then came storming back thanks to their replacements.
The likes of George Graham and Rueben Norville, an under-20s winger 'on loan' to the Club XV, looked sharp and the latter scored a try alongside two well worked ones by Ayr centre Ross Curle.
Stand-off Gregor McNeish converted one of them and it was 'game on' again at 18-17 with just over an hour played.
However, Horne was not going to see his side defeated and he ran in a try and then with three minutes to go replacement back Ben Chalmers went over for a another and then converted it to finish things at 30-17.
Scorers: Scotland under-20s: Tries: Howarth, Cummings, Horne, Chalmers. Pens: Horne 2. Cons: Horne, Chalmers. Scotland Club XV: Tries: Curle 2, Norville. Con: McNeish.
Scotland under-20: R Howarth; H Elms; A Russell, P Kelly, A Coombes; T Galbraith, G Horne, M McCallum, R Graham, Z Fagerson, S Cummings, L Carmichael, L Wynne, J Ritchie, M Bradbury. Subs: J Kerr, G Robertson, D Elkington, N Irvine-Hess, A Miller, A Manson, B Chalmers, R Smith.
Scotland Club XV: K Buchan; C Gossman, R Curle, C Auld, S McLeod; G McNeish, G Wilson; N Beavon R Anderson, S Cessford, S Sutherland, C Templeton , Gary Graham, T Spinks, R Weston. Subs: F Scott, E McQuillin, S Findlay, S Muir, M Peacock, I Moody, George Graham, S Edwards, R Norville.
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