South African based Huw Jones is set to make an unexpected debut for Scotland, after being called up to be part of the squad on their tour of Japan this summer.

Having been overlooked for one of the few Centre roles in the squad when it was announced back in May, he got the nod after Glasgow Warriors’ Finn Russell pulled out because of an injury.

He wasn’t expecting the call, and the move is all the more surprising because he hasn’t actually played rugby in Scotland, despite being born there 22 years ago.

His parents moved down to England when he was just a child, and he was coached in the Bath set-up for a few years, before taking a step back to concentrate on his studies. It was only when he went on a Gap Year exchange visit to South Africa that his career started to take a few upward turns.

After excelling in local rugby in South Africa, he received a scholarship for the University of Cape Town, and heped them to win the Varsity Cup. As he scored his try to help them win in the final, he was being watched by tens of talent scouts, all eager to land him for their club. A deal with lower-league Western Province followed, before a move to the Stormers in the Super Rugby league.

Speaking to the press, Jones couldn’t believe that he was actually part of the squad – “The call came as a bit of a surprise, but I’m thrilled and can’t wait to get to Edinburgh next month and play my part in an exciting squad.”

Tickets for the Tour of Japan can be found on this website, with some great hospitality packages to follow the team around for the whole tour. Scotland are expected to compete against the Japan national side, as well as a local side, and the champions of New Zealand.

Vern Cotter, the current coach of Scotland rugby union national team is preparing his team for the upcoming summer tour which will be held in Japan. Scotland rugby national team will play its first match with Japan at the Toyota stadium in June.

The coach, who was a former player and coach for New Zealand rugby union is now determined to stay focused with his existing number of players in his team and has also kept the option open for others to join the team later. As per the coach, the two match tour offers the benefit of taking smaller squads, although the opportunities will remain open for others to join in.

The squad has to put in their best efforts to do well in the match as this is one of the best opportunities to assess their last game with Ireland and also to help them move forward. The team is all geared to play smartly in order to achieve their main objective of winning. The first game may be tough, but the team is strong and has a few days to prepare soon after their arrival in Japan.

The summer tour of Japan has brought in some excitement and Scotland rugby team believes in winning the game positively in order to influence their ranking for the World Cup. The coach has also said that their main motto of this game is to win and also to develop the leadership group. In addition, the team will gain some experience and control fixtures in a better manner by understanding and making best use of the opportunities in the rugby match. With the tight Scotland squad for the two test tour in Japan, it is quite interesting to figure out the performance of both the teams on the match day which is likely to take place on the 18th of June.

Rob Wainwright, the former captain of the rugby team in the country, seemed to have enjoyed watching the revival of the team that took place in a recent match.

Rib has wanted a big change to come by in the country’s team and performance and he had stated so in many places. After 2014 things have been working for the better for the country’s rugby team. Rob is delighted that his friends are in charge of bringing about the change in the team’s performance.

Rob, who comes from the island of Coll, feels that he is not in any position to exert influence on the Scottish rugby team. The sport as well as the national team reached a new low in a few past performances and that is when he felt that he had to take some action. Rob, having been part of the British Lion and the captain of the Scotland team, felt frustrated when he saw the team perform in 2014 at Murrayfield.

At that time, England won the cup and the hosts did not even win a point. At such a juncture Rob felt that he owed his team some action and initiative from his side. Since then there has been several changes and improvements in the team. As he surveys the recent Scottish rugby team he feels delight in seeing the improvements that have come about.

Indeed, the team even ended up at the World Cup and they came close to performing in the semifinals even. That was certainly a feat for the national team. They have also done well in the games of the Six Nations. They were able to secure victories over countries like France and Italy, which speaks well of the vigor and verve that has come into the team’s performance.

Police are looking for a few Ireland rugby supporters after a passenger was drummed up on a train after a Six Nations rugby match. The duo are believed to have roomed a carriage in South London after going to the Ireland and England match on 27th February, in Twickenham.

The officers told that one of the men vomited on the floor and another complaint came from a 58 year old passenger.

Sarah Garden, the Detective Sergeant, told that the victim was assaulted after taking consequence with one of the men who was vomiting on the floor. He was pushed and punched to the floor by the men who just ceased their attack when other passengers interposed.

Det Sgt Garden told that officers saw CCTV from the train between East Grinstead and Victoria and distributed photographs on local police intelligence nets. The victim had bruises and cuts to his face and went to hospital for assessment. It was very fortunate that his injuries were not that serious.

He added that the scopes of turning a victim of violent crime are very low on the rail network and they work hard to make sure that the railway stays a safe place.

Police have already contacted other departments who could help them in their investigation. As of now, police have not received any updated information regarding the offenders from any side.

Heeding a request from the management of the national side, Scotland Rugby side Edinburgh Rugby has agreed to rest star man Greg Laidlaw in a move that will see the player miss up to five weeks of action for the Pro 12 side.

The veteran will move from Edinburgh to link up with the Aviva Premiership Rugby Football Union club Gloucester Rugby in England at the end of the current season and the Scottish rugby bosses have asked for the club to give the legendary half back some time out as they prepare for an assault on the Rugby World Cup which will be held in England next summer.

Scotland Director of Rugby Scott Johnson spoke to the media after Edinburgh Rugby announced their decision to rest Laidlaw where he stated that the player has been involved in plenty of games for both the Scotland Rugby national team as well as his club team but looking at the schedule over the next sixteen to eighteen months and how packed it is, they had made the request to the club to give him some time off in order to avoid burn out.

He added that the national team management is pleased with the gesture of the club as well and knowing the feeling the player has for it, they will also give him the opportunity to turn out for them before the season is over as well.

According to the club management, the important thing at this moment is the future of Scotland Rugby and the performance of the national team will be pivotal to the success and sustenance of the clubs in the country and they had no other option but supporting the move for the betterment of the game in the country and for the benefit of the player concerned.

Scott Johnson, the head coach of the Scotland Rugby team has admitted that his team is far from being the finished article, but he is confident that progression is going according to plan and his side is capable enough of causing one or two upsets as the team prepares for the RBS Six Nations Championship.

Scotland have had to endure some of the worst performances in their recent history in the Six Nations Championship but there have been signs of improvement as the team showed enough grit and determination to push the Australians all the way in a narrow defeat in the autumn internationals.

Ryan Grant, Stuart Hogg, Richie Gray as well as Sean Maitland, all those who starred for the British and Irish Lions team during their summer tour of Australia last year have been named in the Scotland Rugby squad for the upcoming RBS Six Nations Championship and Johnson has also continued his policy of promoting exciting young talents in the form of Chris Fusaro and Dougie Fife as well.

According to the Aussie coach of the Scotland team, score board pressure as well as consistency will hold the key to his side’s performances but he has blatantly admitted that the team is still a long way from where he initially wanted to be at this stage ahead of the Rugby World Cup in England in 2015.

But he has insisted that although the progression has been slow, it has been steady and that is what that matters.
The Scotland Rugby team boss stated that consistency is the key to any good side and he thinks if his team can get some consistency going, then they are good enough to beat any side on any given day, adding that they are willing to take more risks as well.

Four Scotland Rugby players will be making their appearances before a court in Glasgow at the end of this month over an alleged case of assault, it has been reported.

According to several reports, the players in question are Ryan Wilson, Sean Maitland, Rory Hughes and Ryan Grant. Both Grant and Maitland were a part of the British and Irish Lions team that toured Australia in the summer and came away with a 2-1 result earlier in 2013.

The charges relate to a case of assault back in the end of October when a 29 year old man was seriously injured, which reportedly took place outside a takeaway shop in the west end of Glasgow.

Moreover, both Maitland as well as Grant is a part of the Scotland Rugby team’s squad which will take on South Africa this Sunday at home.

Wilson, on the other hand, is recovering from an injury and has four caps for the national team while Hughes is a part of the Scotland Sevens squad.

According to a police source, three players from the national team were reported against on charges of assault and serious assault at the end of October. It has also been reported that Wilson’s name was added to the list of offenders later when the police got reports about his involvement.

All four players are currently under contract with the Glasgow Warriors and according to a spokesman for the club, it is always a part of the procedure of the club to institute an internal enquiry to find if the players are indeed guilty as charged and report it to Scotland Rugby about any observation that they make.

The spokesman also mention that the internal enquiry is going on at the moment and it won’t be right to comment any further on the matter.

Four of Scotland’s biggest rugby stars visited Montrose Rugby Club, where they interacted with the children there, and tried to motivate them to follow in their footsteps.

Scotland rugby star record holder Chris Paterson, along with big guns Matt Scott, Michael Fedo and Chris Dean visited the club, as part of a program which ensures that supports local rugby clubs, and helps them to advance with great progress in to the future.

Apart from these four from the Scotland rugby scene, there were some more players, who participated in the welfare event. They played games, gave signatures, and there were photo sessions with the players, where the youngsters got a chance to click pictures with the players. And what is more, apart from the players being there, there was the Six Nations Trophy as well. So this generated a huge amount of excitement with the youngsters at the club, who, needless to say, will be aspiring high for themselves in the future.

Being chosen as one of the RBS RugbyForce clubs, Montrose has really grown in the past years, and this inclusion in the RugbyForce has really helped the progress of the rugby scenario in the Montrose region a great deal. And the best part about the Montrose club is that, there will be many junior divisions for both boys and girls, and they will be starting from primary till under-18. So this is indeed a very promising factor for Scotland rugby, as many great future players might just be trained from here.

And coupled with these programs, young players can interact with the greats, enjoy with them, and most importantly, learn from them how to make it big in the Scotland rugby circuit, and make a name for themselves, and become a great rugby player one day in the future.

Rugby Football Union Championship club the Bedford Blues are gearing up for the RFU Championship play-off final first leg match against the Newcastle Falcons and the chairman of the club Geoff Irvine is enjoying each and every moment of the build-up.

The Blues have reached the play-off finals for the first time in their history and the club’s chairman is pleased that the club’s players and the coaching staff are finally getting the plaudits that were due to them.

He mentioned that everything is going extremely well, adding that the main stand was sold out the day after the tickets went on sale, mentioning the club has not seen so much excitement for a long time. He admitted that the way things are shaping up, it can only mean that the club will have a bumper support cheering them on come the final. He also stated that he is extremely pleased with Mike Rayer, the club’s head coach, his entire coaching team and the players who have taken the club to this stage.

Irvine went on to state that a lot of people don’t really appreciate how hard the club works, mentioning the fact that the squad that the club has is mainly full of a part time players who have other jobs as well. These players come in to the club at six in the morning, hit the gym and then go to their full time jobs.

Irvine was part of consortium that took over the club back in 1999 and he is extremely pleased to see the club now reaping the rewards, adding that the one thing that has led to this kind of success is its stability. The Blues are under dogs for the match against Newcastle but Irvine is pleased nonetheless considering the magnitude of this achievement.