Callum Anderson wings into Scotland sevens squad after late call-up

SCOTLAND sevens coach Graham Shiel has turned to one of Melrose's stars of the Borders circuit as a late injury replacement for this weekend's Emirates Airline London Sevens.

Winger Callum Anderson, who is a teacher at Kelso High School, has been drafted into the squad in place of fellow Borderer Fraser Harkness, who has a knee injury, for the Twickenham event that starts this morning.

Selection marks a return to the World Sevens Series for Anderson after a four-year absence, the former Peebles player making his debut in the 2007 Hong Kong tournament and following up with the Adelaide leg a week later.

The 24-year-old was one of the top try-scorers for Melrose as they swept to the BSPC Kings of the Sevens trophy for a second year in succession, and also a key performer in the team's Premier One and Border League XVs double.

Anderson admitted the call had come as a surprise, between classes at Kelso High School on Wednesday.

He said: "I was told I'd definitely be flying down the next day as a precaution. If I wasn't needed I'd be flying home and, if I was, I'd be staying on for the London Sevens.

"It's been a bit of a whirlwind but it's absolutely brilliant to be here and to be kept on and be involved. I'd accepted that last weekend was the end of my season so I'd washed my boots and put them away in the cupboard, so it'll be quite nice to put them back on."

Anderson is not entirely new to the squad as he has been part of the group of club players invited to train at Murrayfield on regular Wednesdays, and Shiel insisted he was close to original selection.

He said: "Callum has been part of the wider training squad that we've been working with all season. He has played a lot of good quality rugby this year and he's been a form player over the last six weeks on the sevens series in the Borders, along with a pedigree for sevens having played internationally before.

"It's a great opportunity for somebody who's in form to come into a squad and to get a chance to perform on a world stage. He's a strong runner; he's very good with ball in hand and makes good decisions. He's a threat with the ball and will add to our ability to line break, allowing other players to perform at the level we need to get success." Though a Scotland age-grade cap at U18, U19 and U20 levels, Anderson said that this would be his greatest career highlight so far, and was hopeful that those midweek sessions and Melrose's success might lessen the apprehension at swapping Jed's Riverside Park, where he last featured with 'Rose last weekend, for Twickenham.

"Coming into the squad off the back of the Wednesday training sessions and from playing well at sevens with Melrose gives me a lot of confidence," he added."I'll still be a bit nervous, but I can be more at peace that I've been playing well and have been integrated into the squad already.

"Playing in front of the Twickenham crowd is just going to be phenomenal. Playing in a stadium like that is going to be the highlight of my career. I'm really looking forward to it. Obviously, it's really hard for Fraser (Harkness] who's missing out through injury but I'm delighted to get the opportunity and certainly plan on making the most of it."

Scotland squad: C Anderson (Melrose), T Brown, S Dewar, L Jones, S McInally, S Newlands, R Samson, A Turnbull (all Edinburgh), M Fedo (Team Northumbria), P Horne (Glasgow), S Riddell (Stewart's Melville), A Skeen (Watsonians).

Pool fixtures: 10:30am: Samoa v Scotland, Pool C; 10:52am: Australia v Canada, Pool C; 11:14am: South Africa v Russia, Pool D; 11:36am: Fiji v Portugal, Pool D; 11:58am: New Zealand v Kenya, Pool A; 12:20pm: Wales v Spain, Pool A; 12:42pm: England v United States, Pool B; 1:04pm: Argentina v France, Pool B; 1:36pm: Samoa v Canada, Pool C; 1:58pm: Australia v Scotland, Pool C; 2:20pm: South Africa v Portugal, Pool D; 2:42pm: Fiji v Russia, Pool D; 3:04pm: New Zealand v Spain, Pool A; 3:26pm: Wales v Kenya, Pool A; 3:48pm: England v France, Pool B; 4:10pm: Argentina v United States, Pool B; 4:54pm: Scotland v Canada, Pool C; 5:16pm: Russia v Portugal, Pool D; 5:38pm: Kenya v Spain, Pool A; 6:00pm: United States v France, Pool B; 6:22pm: Samoa v Australia, Pool C; 6:44pm: South Africa v Fiji, Pool D; 7:06pm: New Zealand v Wales, Pool A; 7:28pm: England v Argentina, Pool B.