Scotland A team: Jonny Gray among experienced group as Six Nations hopefuls given chance to ‘showcase their wares’
Jonny Gray (right) is included in a strong Scotland A side
Scotland A have named a strong 23-man squad to face Italy XV tonight (Friday, February 6), with Jonny Gray leading out Nigel Carolan’s side as captain.
The towering lock, who has tallied 81 senior Test caps for his country, previously captained the A team back in 2014, where he also served under Carolan in a 16-16 draw against England Saxons.
Gray is one of several senior players included in the side to face Italy, with the likes of Rory Sutherland, D’arcy Rae, Cameron Redpath, Andy Onyeama-Christie and Magnus Bradbury named.
Scotland A name strong side for Italy A clash
Harry Paterson gets the nod at 15 for the clash, with Kyle Rowe and Arron Reed named on the wings. Ollie Smith and Redpath partner in midfield, while vice-captain Fergus Burke joins fellow PREM man Gus Warr in the halves.
In the pack, Alexander Masibaka, Freddy Douglas and fellow vice-captain Onyeama-Christie form a tasty back-row, while skipper Gray is joined by Alex Craig in the locks. Experienced prop duo Rae and Sutherland feature in the front-row alongside in-form Glasgow hooker Gregor Hiddleston.
There is further experience on the bench, too, with the likes of capped men Harri Morris, Alec Hepburn, Will Hurd, Josh Bayliss joining the aforementioned Bradbury among the replacements, while Euan Ferrie, Ben Afshar and Dan Lancaster all get their first taste of life in a Scotland jersey.
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The game will be available to stream for free on YouTube, and gets underway at 18:30 local time (17:30 UK).
Commenting, Scotland A head coach Carolan said: “It’s good, it’s great to get everyone together. There’s a big crew around, but it’s brilliant to have the quality of players under one roof.
“It’s fantastic, especially at this stage of the (Six Nations) campaign. Everyone gets to showcase their wares in the Scottish system, and gives them an opportunity to put their hand up for games further down the line.
“(Picking experienced players) gives the team itself a bit of validation where you have some experienced players, and you have a nice little blend of youth and guys who are showing form for their clubs. It also shows how serious the senior management are about this game.”
Scotland A team in full
Starting XV: 15 Harry Paterson, 14 Kyle Rowe, 13 Ollie Smith, 12 Cameron Redpath, 11 Arron Reed, 10 Fergus Burke, 9 Gus Warr, 8 Alexander Masibaka, 7 Freddy Douglas, 6 Andy Onyeama-Christie, 5 Alex Craig, 4 Jonny Gray, 3 D’arcy Rae, 2 Gregor Hiddleston, 1 Rory Sutherland
Replacements: 16 Harri Morris, 17 Alec Hepburn, 18 Will Hurd, 19 Magnus Bradbury, 20 Euan Ferrie, 21 Josh Bayliss, 22 Ben Afshar, 23 Dan Lancaster