How Duhan van der Merwe became Scotland’s unlikely hero after breaking try record
Scotland ace Duhan van der Merwe has notched an impressive 28 tries in 41 caps
Duhan van der Merwe would likely have never thought he would become Scotland’s all-time top try-scorer growing up, but has become an unlikely hero for his adopted nation.
Arriving at Edinburgh ahead of the 2017/18 campaign, he quickly established himself as a mainstay in the side, grabbing an impressive 10 tries in 18 appearances in his maiden campaign.
He only improved from there too. In his second season in the Scottish capital, Van der Merwe registered another 10 tries in 23 matches in all competitions; and he then caught the attention of the Scotland selectors.
The George-native made his Scotland debut in the 2020 Six Nations, and has been a key man in Gregor Townsend’s side since. He has gone onto win a further 40 caps for his adopted nation, and notched his record-breaking 28th try this summer against Uruguay.
But just how did he become Scotland’s deadliest finisher? Here are the key moments in his international career.
Scotland debut
After impressing in his first two seasons with Edinburgh, Van der Merwe earned a call-up to Scotland’s squad for the Six Nations in 2020.
He won his first cap from the bench in Scotland’s delayed clash with Wales at the Parc y Scarlets, and despite only getting a 15 minute cameo, this was a sign of things to come in a blue jumper for the back.
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Calcutta Cup hero
Whenever you think of Van der Merwe in a Scotland shirt, your brain automatically flashes back to Calcutta Cups doesn’t it.
The powerhouse winger seems to bring his A-game against the auld enemy, be it at Edinburgh or Twickenham, and this has helped Scotland dominate this fixture in recent seasons. He has scored back-to-back hat-tricks in the past two Calcutta Cups, including some wonderful solo efforts too.
British and Irish Lions selection
Whilst his debut for Scotland came in 2020, the following international season was when he announced himself on the Test stage. He notched five tries in five matches during the Six Nations, and his form earned him a spot on the British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa.
He made a try-scoring debut for the Lions in their 28-10 win over Japan in Edinburgh, and went on to feature in all three Tests against the Springboks.
Smashing the record
The record was slowly creeping up on Van der Merwe with every try, but this summer he finally got himself to the top of the tree.
He equalled Stuart Hogg’s tally of 27 tries with a score in their mammoth win over the USA in the second match of their tour, but he had to wait until their Test against Uruguay to finally overtake the iconic full-back.
Fellow South African-native Kyle Steyn connected with Van der Merwe to send him over for the record-breaking 28th try in their nervy 31-19 win over Uruguay on Saturday.
The total count of 28 is even more impressive considering it only took him 41 caps to reach it, which works out as a strike-rate of 0.68, and who knows how many more he could score in the future!
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