‘Blessed’ Sione Tuipulotu opens up on ‘fairytale’ Scotland captaincy alongside younger brother
Sione Tuipulotu in action for Scotland in 2024.
Scotland captain Sione Tuipulotu says being named Scotland captain is like a ‘fairytale’, and is especially excited to be doing it alongside his brother in the Autumn Nations Series.
The Glasgow centre has been a key figure in Scotland’s backline since his debut in 2021 but will now lead his side out for the Autumn Nations Series.
“I’m so proud”
Commenting on being made captain for the first time, the Australian native – who qualifies for Scotland through his Grandma – said: “I’m so proud, and I know how much this will mean to my family back home, especially my gran. I haven’t told her yet, but I’m looking forward to telling her when the news comes out.
He also added that his Mum will be making the trip from Australia to watch him play, and revealed it will be her first time watching a game at Murrayfield.
“I haven’t really told any of my family yet except my dad,” the powerful centre said.
“I want it to be a surprise for my family and also because my mum’s coming over and it’ll be her first game at Murrayfield. I feel like the stars are kind of aligning for me and I’m really excited for it. It’ll be my son’s first game and also my mum’s first game at Murrayfield so it’s going to be special.”
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The family ties don’t stop there for Tuipulotu either, with his younger brother also earning a call-up to Scotland’s squad. It’s fair to assume a lot of friends and family will be looking at betting sites UK to back Gregor Townsend’s men ahead of their first game against Fiji on November 2.
Mosese Tuipulotu has impressed since making the move to Edinburgh this season, appearing four times for the capital outfit.
“The most emotional phone call I’ve ever had was Gregor when he told me I’ll be Scotland captain, but when he phoned to say my brother would be included was a pretty close second,” Tuipulotu said.
“You grow up with your brothers, you see everything they go through, and now we get to be in the squad together. I want to challenge him to be better during these four weeks.”
“To be honest, it’s a fairytale to have my brother there in the squad when I’m captain,” he continued. “I just feel blessed. It makes me really excited to see what we can achieve over the next four weeks and to have my brother by my side with me captaining, it is a fairytale.”
“Gathered so much experience”
Tuipulotu is the latest man to take up the mantel under Townsend, and he explained how much he will lean on previous co-captains Finn Russell and Rory Darge – who will serve as vice-captains this time around.
“I’ve been inspired by the captains that I’ve played under since moving to Scotland, and I think all of them have been so different for me,” he said.
“I gathered so much so much experience from playing under Finn and Rory, and to have them around is going to be so important, I’m going to lean on them so much.”
He added: “I believe this will be more of a group thing moving forward so we can all try and drive the team towards success.”
Tupulotu’s side begin their Autumn Nations Series against Fiji, before taking on the Springboks, Portugal and Australia.
