Fourth Scottish woman gets pro rugby contract

Scotland's Sarah Law has been handed a professional contract. Picture: Gary Hutchison/SNS/SRU

The Murrayfield Wanderers and Edinburgh University No 9 follows in the footsteps of fellow internationalists and academy players Jade Konkel, Chloe Rollie and Lisa Thomson, who recently joined French side LMRCV in Lille as part of a performance partnership between  the academy and the French Top 8 runners-up.

Law, who moves into the stage-three strata of full-time players,sealed Scotland  Women’s famous 15-14 win against Wales in the 2017 Six Nations as she successfully kicked a penalty in the dying minutes of the match at  Broadwood to end the ladies’ long wait for a competitive win.

The SRU yesterday confirmed a 97-strong BT Sport Academy list for the 2017/18 season. There are 20 new faces in the supported stages of the programme (tiers one and two) who are provided with additional support alongside their existing club or school programmes, on top of the regional early talent identification camps for U14, U15 and U16 male and female players.

SRU head of academy and performance programmes Stephen Gemmell said: “Academy selection is  considered within a national context and ultimately it’s about who we think can follow in the footsteps of the 20  players who have graduated from the academy into the senior professional ranks in the past two years and can continue to impact the game at all levels.

“The inclusion of 19-year-old Matt Fagerson in the recent Scotland camp and the selection of 13 Scottish players aged 23 and under – six of whom are aged 20 or under – for Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors in the opening rounds of the Guinness Pro14 is testimony to the improvements currently being made.

“The challenge is to make sure that continues while ensuring we take advantage of the progress of the domestic club and school game by innovating and finding solutions to producing the players of tomorrow.”