Mustchin after more Test rugby

Matt Mustchin admits that now he has had a taste of international rugby he is desperate for more.

Matt Mustchin admits that now he has had a taste of international rugby he is desperate for more.

The 31-year-old became an unlikely Scotland international when he made his debut against Argentina earlier this month.

Mustchin, a New Zealand-born lock, had only just qualified to play for Scotland under residency rules when he got the call to join the national squad for their trip to South America.

He had already booked a family holiday but when injury and club commitments deprived Frank Hadden of the services of Jim Hamilton, Nathan Hines, Scott Murray and Jason White, Mustchin was ready to drop everything when he received the call from the Head Coach – and he grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

“I said before I went that it was just a huge honour to be asked to go, but to then start in both games was beyond my wildest dreams,” Mustchin said.

“It would have been nice if my wife and parents could have been there, but it was pretty short notice so I had to make do with speaking to them straight after the games. They're pretty happy and proud, and so am I.

“Hopefully this is only the start for me and my family will get a chance to see me play for Scotland in the flesh in the future.

“A lot of things have changed in the last six weeks. I've got a year left of my contract with Edinburgh and before this trip I didn't really know what I would be doing at the end of next season.

“But now that I have been capped I want more – and if I want to be playing for Scotland I have to be close to Scotland. So we'll see what happens.

“Now that I'm in the mix, I'm not planning on going anywhere.”

Mustchin was one of Scotland's best performers in their defeat to Argentina in the first of their two matches on tour, and in the second game he was even more impressive – registering an astonishing 27 tackles.

“I thought I played pretty well in the first match, and [forwards coach] Andy Robinson said that to me as well,” he added.

“Then, before the second Test he gave me a bit of stick because I went to play golf a couple of days beforehand, but afterwards he said that if I play like that then I can have every Thursday off to play golf.

“I was pretty happy with the way I played in the second match – it was better than I played in the first one.”