Scotland back-rower Magnus Bradbury extends Edinburgh Rugby contract

Scotland back-row forward Magnus Bradbury has signed a new contract with Edinburgh. Picture: SRU/SNS

Bradbury, first broke into the Edinburgh first XV as a teenager and now re-signs following a revitalising year which saw him establish himself as a Scotland starter at the Rugby World Cup in Japan.

Son of SRU president Dee Bradbury, the 24-year-old has had rocky moments in his fledgling career. Edinburgh head coach Richard Cockerill placed his faith in him by naming him club skipper when he took over in 2017 but within a few months the youngster was stripped of the captaincy following a drunken incident in the capital city centre after a game which resulted in him being ruled out of playing duty with a head injury.

He has buckled back down and regained his Test career, travelling to Japan as injury cover for team-mate Jamie Ritchie, who had a cheek fracture before also making the trip, then stepping in when another Edinburgh loose forward, Hamish Watson, injured his knee in the World Cup opener against Ireland.

Bradbury in action against Japan at the recent Rugby World Cup. Picture: Getty Images

Bradbury featured in three World Cup games, his 11th cap coming in the epic final Pool A loss to hosts Japan in Yokohama.

He said: “I’m really happy to have been given the opportunity to re-sign with the club that I've spent my whole career with.

“It’s a great place to be and it’s brilliant to be part of a team that is so driven to succeed and compete at the highest level.

“Edinburgh is an exciting place to be at the moment and I'm looking forward to seeing the results that this team can produce moving forward.”

Cockerill, added: “Magnus has developed into a really strong, international calibre back-row and he’ll be a big player for this club in the years to come.

“He’s an Edinburgh man who has already played a lot of games for this club at a young age. We’re delighted to have re-signed another young player who is part of a strong core of Scotland internationalists.”

Having come through the ranks at Oban High School, Bradbury transferred to the Edinburgh's Merchiston Castle School on a rugby scholarship for his final years of studies where his game progressed further at both Boroughmuir RFC and through Edinburgh's academy system.

Bradbury made his full Edinburgh debut against Leinster at the RDS Arena in October 2014 at the age of 19. He was awarded his first Scotland cap by former coach Vern Cotter, starting at blindside flanker as the national team secured a 19-16 win over Argentina in November 2016.

The back-row penned a new three-year deal prior to the 2017/18 season but, as has been the new policy at Edinburgh, the length of his new contract is undisclosed.

Bradbury has scored nine tries in 74 appearances for Edinburgh, who currently top Guinness Pro14 Conference B and are now preparing for a Pool 3-topping European Challenge Cup clash with Bordeaux-Begles in France at the weekend..