Under-20s lack the 'oomph' to throw their weight around

Published on Saturday 31 January 2009 18:46

IF AN air of optimism surrounds the senior Scotland squad in the run-up to the Six Nations, the Under-20s are facing an uphill struggle. This age group probably has the worst record of any Scottish national team and this year's crop faces another fight for respectability.

The squad is not without talent. Full-back Peter Horne has been on form for West this season and he is known to be a target of Sean Lineen at Glasgow, although some believe his best position may be in midfield rather than No.15.

At the coal face the likely skipper is hooker Fraser Brown who has been sidelined with a serious neck injury for much of the season but he has managed a few games for Watsonians before getting the call up for the U20s.

Glasgow's giant Richie Gray, pictured, is another stand-out player and at 6ft 8in he really does stand out but the big lock is the exception that proves the rule because the young squad is desperately short of muscle. As the old lady said in the burger advert: "Where's the beef?"

The Under-20s played against both pro teams' back-up squads recently and, while they managed a try against Glasgow, the youngsters leaked a troubling 39 points in both outings. The matches ended as little more than tackling practice for the age group players because they struggled to win possession.

The livewire exile scrum-half Harry Pygros has to fight Hawks' Peter Jericevich for the No.9 shirt and the industrious Chris Fusaro, from the same Bell Baxter academy as Horne, is sure to fill one wing forward shirt. Fusaro won the Scotland Sevens Player of the Year award last season but for all his speed, skills and determination Fusaro highlights the problems with this squad; oodles of talent, too little oomph.

In the absence of a big ball-carrying No.8, the selectors have drafted in Watsonians' Stuart McInally from the Under-19s. His promotion into the older age group goes against current SRU policy but the move makes sense for all that.

Sadly the squad has scarcely any competitive pro rugby experience and they will be coming up against plenty who have. Wales have four players with pro experience in their squad, including Dragons prop Aaron Coundley. England are expected to field Owen Farrell and the fly-half, son of league legend Andy, has already appeared for Saracens in an EDF Cup tie. That would raise problems enough but Farrell is actually in England's U18 squad.

Scotland's age group system may have improved from the bad old days but it is still failing the players in not adequately preparing them to play at this level. The youngsters won't want for effort but they are being let down by a system that does not identify talent at a young enough age and then hothouse the best of the youngsters.