8 rookies whose stocks have risen during the July internationals including a baby-faced prop and some real attacking threats
England prop Fin Baxter, Wallabies number eight Charlie Cale and Scotland full-back Harry Paterson.
After the completion of the recent mid-year international series, we take a look at some of the new Test players who have impressed for their various countries over the past few weeks.
There were several outstanding performances from the various newbies who have all made their debuts in the international arena during this year.
Without further ado, here’s eight of the best.
Fin Baxter (England)
The baby-faced loosehead prop was thrown into the deep end when he made his Test debut for the Red Rose after just 17 minutes of their first Test against the All Blacks in Dunedin last week. This, after fellow Harlequins front-row Joe Marler was forced off with a foot injury but Baxter filled in for his more experienced club-mate with aplomb.
He retained his spot for the second Test in Auckland and although the 22-year-old came off second best in his direct duel in the scrums with All Blacks hardman Tyrel Lomax, over two Tests, he made his impact in other areas. Baxter did well with ball in hand and has a high work-rate on defence as he made 16 and 14 tackles respectively in Dunedin and Auckland.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (South Africa)
Feinberg-Mngomezulu is another young player who faced a baptism of fire when he made an earlier than expected appearance off the bench for the Springboks in their narrow defeat to Ireland in their second Test at the weekend. That was only the 22-year-old’s third Test appearance but he put in a solid performance which earned special praise from Bok boss Rassie Erasmus.
The youngster announced himself at Test level when he made his debut off the replacements bench against Wales at Twickenham and slotted a 52-metre penalty kick and built on that effort with a late cameo in the first Boks’ first Test against Ireland in Pretoria. That was followed by Saturday’s 77-minute effort in Durban – when he replaced the concussed Willie le Roux at full-back – and he gave the Boks good attacking momentum from the back as he finished with a team-high 62 metres gained in that clash.
Cortez Ratima (New Zealand)
The 23-year-old is the newest international on this list after making his All Blacks debut in Saturday’s victory over England at Eden Park, but there was no sign of nerves getting the better of him as he adjusted to the rigours of Test rugby seamlessly. Ratima has shone for the Chiefs in Super Rugby Pacific over the past two years and was one of the leading try-scorers in that competition in 2024.
That outstanding form has earned him a call-up to the All Blacks squad and his introduction off the bench against the Red Rose in his Test debut in Auckland – along with Beauden Barrett’s – coincided with an improved effort from the home side, who extended their winning run at Eden Park to 49 matches. Ratima brought plenty of energy to New Zealand’s cause and showed his class with excellent distribution skills and should make plenty of Test appearances for his country.
Charlie Cale (Australia)
The Brumbies number eight is highly rated in Australia and made his international debut as a replacement during the Wallabies’ first Test victory against Wales in Sydney last weekend. Cale came onto the field midway through the second half of that clash and impressed with some deft offloads in contact and he gave his side good attacking momentum with some strong carries.
The Brumbies star made his first international start in the Wallabies’ second Test win over Wales in Melbourne on Saturday and continued where he left off in Sydney with a solid 60-minute stint on the field. Once again, he did well on attack while also putting his body on the line on defence and at the age of 23 he is expected to play plenty of Tests for his country.
Jamie Osborne (Ireland)
The Leinsterman made his international debut in Ireland’s defeat to South Africa in Pretoria last week and he was actually a surprise inclusion at full-back when Andy Farrell named his matchday squad. Despite finishing on the losing side, Osborne did well in hostile surroundings and was rewarded with a deserved try.
The 22-year-old put delivered a solid performance as he was prominent on attack and defence and he retained his spot on the run-on side for Saturday’s second Test in Durban. If truth be told, Osborne put in an even better performance as he shone with ball in hand, gaining 56 metres from 17 runs while he also did well in dealing with an aerial bombardment from Bok fly-half Handre Pollard.
Archie Griffin (Wales)
The Australian-born tighthead prop qualifies to play for Wales through ancestry and plies his trade with Bath in the Premiership. He made his international debut when he came off the replacements bench in Wales’ narrow Six Nations defeat to England at Twickenham earlier this year and built on that performance during their recent tour of Australia.
The 22-year-old started both those Tests against the Wallabies and although Wales finished on the losing side against their hosts on each occasion, Griffin caught the eye with fine performances. A solid scrummager and willing ball carrier, he made his impact on defence as he put in a big shift in that department and left his mark on the first Test in Sydney when he made a match-high 26 tackles during a 75-minute stint.
Leo Barré (France)
Les Bleus left most of their first choice players at home for their South American tour which included two Tests against Argentina and another one against Uruguay and Barré will be happy with his efforts as he gave a good account of himself in the two Tests against Los Pumas.
Although he did not cross the whitewash in either of those encounters, the Stade Francais full-back proved to be a genuine attacking threat from the back while he was also safe under the high ball and in the last line of defence. On Saturday, France suffered a 33-25 loss to Argentina in Buenos Aires but the 21-year-old was arguably Les Bleus’ best player as he tested his opponents’ defence and gained a team-high 107 metres.
Harry Paterson (Scotland)
The Edinburgh full-back made his international debut for his country earlier this year when he came into Scotland’s run-on side on matchday after Kyle Steyn withdrew from the squad when his wife went into labour. Despite his late call-up, Paterson played with a maturity beyond his years as the Scots pushed Les Bleus all the way before suffering a narrow 20-16 loss.
After that match, Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend said Paterson’s international bow is “one of the best debuts I’ve ever seen” but he did not feature in the Six Nations again. However, he was back in the number 15 jersey for his country during their 73-12 thrashing of Canada in Ottawa earlier this month and crossed for his first Test try in that match.
