Duhan van der Merwe puts personal glory on the back burner

Scotland’s record-chasing speedster Duhan van der Merwe insists he will not be focused on personal glory when they face Italy in Rome on March 9.

Van der Merwe is set to become Scotland’s all-time leading try-scorer and is just one try adrift of Stuart Hogg’s record after scoring a hat-trick in Saturday’s 30-21 win over England at Murrayfield.

Rocketing up Scotland’s try-scoring charts

The 28-year-old came into this year’s Six Nations in sixth position on Scotland‘s try-scoring chart but has already claimed five tries – after also dotting down twice against Wales in Round One – and has now overtaken Chris Paterson, Tony Stanger, Ian Smith and his Edinburgh team-mate Darcy Graham into second place.

Hogg holds the record of 27 tries in 100 Test appearances while Van der Merwe has 26 five-pointers in just 37 appearances for Scotland.

The South African-born wing is aware that he can draw level against the Azzurri but said it’s not something which he will be focusing on too much when they take on Italy and Ireland in their final two Six Nations Tests.

“It’s something I targeted coming into the Six Nations, to see if I could do it (catch Hogg) in the Six Nations,” he said. “I knew it was a big task and there’s obviously still two games left… But the most important thing is the team, it’s not about myself.

“If that means I have to chase box-kicks and not score tries or give the pass to someone else, then so be it. It’s all about the team and us getting the wins.

“We want to start winning stuff as a team and the next two games are massive for us.”

When asked if he had allowed himself to think about the possibility of making history in Rome a week on Saturday, Van der Merwe said: “It’s probably in the back of my mind, but I wouldn’t say I’m going into the game just thinking about myself and thinking about how I can score as an individual.

“For me, the team is always first. If that means I have to give the pass and not score myself, then I have to do it. If I don’t score but we get the win, I’ll be a happy man.”

Saturday’s hat-trick was a significant one as it meant Van der Merwe became the first player to score three tries for Scotland in a Calcutta Cup match. He has now played in four Tests against the Auld Enemy and been on the winning side on each occasion, scoring six tries since his first appearance in the fixture in 2021.

Enjoys playing against England

“I don’t know what it is, but I obviously love scoring against England so it’s pretty special,” said Van der Merwe. “It’s four wins out of four for me in this fixture. What an achievement that is, and it just shows you where this team is going.

“It’s obviously very special to score a hat-trick for Scotland, even more so against England, but the most important thing was for the team to get the win.

“I obviously finished off a few opportunities but I’d say I made a few mistakes here and there. I wouldn’t say I was at my best but being a winger, I have to finish off the opportunities I get and luckily I was able to do that.”

READ MORE: Gregor Townsend angry at English rugby bosses over ruling which questions Six Nations ‘integrity’