Huw Jones
Head Coach Vern Cotter has made six personnel changes to the Scotland team to face Japan in this Saturday’s second summer Test match at the Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo (25 June, kick-off 11.20am BST, 7.20pm JST) – live on BBC.
The alterations are split evenly between the backs and forwards, with a positional switch made in each division to accommodate the new faces.
Scrum-half Henry Pyrgos, wing Sean Maitland and centre Peter Horne all come off the bench to start the match, with Pyrgos taking on the captaincy and kicking duties from Greig Laidlaw.
Maitland is promoted in place of Damien Hoyland, with Sean Lamont coming into the squad among the substitutes, while Horne comes into midfield in place of the injured Duncan Taylor (hamstring), prompting a move to outside-centre for Matt Scott to accommodate the Warriors playmaker.
In the pack, Rory Sutherland remains in possession of the loosehead berth he inherited in the third minute of last weekend’s Test win over Japan, when Alasdair Dickinson limped off with a hamstring injury, earning his first start for the national team.
On the other side of the front-row, Moray Low swaps places with try-scorer Willem Nel to start his first Test since the 2014 summer tour win over Canada in Toronto, while Josh Strauss comes in to the back-row for John Hardie, with John Barclay moving to openside to make room for Strauss on the blindside.
Other notable inclusions see prop Gordon Reid (who arrived in Tokyo on Monday) take up a spot among the replacements, with uncapped centre Huw Jones set for an international debut if called upon from the bench.
Scotland Head Coach, Vern Cotter, said: “Continuity has been key for us since we began this season a year ago and in front of us is the need to put in another good, 80-minute performance against a team looking to bounce back from defeat last weekend.
“It was a very tiring game and we expect something similar this weekend.
“They’ll be very physical and relentless. That’s how they beat South Africa only a year ago in the opening round of the Rugby World Cup, so we know to expect a committed, tenacious team.”
He added: “We’re looking for improvements all over the field this Saturday but especially holding on to the ball at critical times.
“Our pressure through set phase was good last weekend with a lot of time invested in upping the level of impact that can have on the game; contesting their scrums and their lineouts.
“We want to be able to control this game as best we can.”
Scotland team to play Japan at the Ajinomoto Stadium, Tokyo
Saturday 25 June (kick-off 7.20pm Japan time, 11.20am BST, 12.20 SA time):
15. Stuart Hogg (Glasgow Warriors) – 44 caps; 11 tries, 3 pens, 64 points
14. Tommy Seymour (Glasgow Warriors) – 28 caps; 13 tries, 65 points
13. Matt Scott (Gloucester) – 35 caps; 4 tries, 20 points
12. Peter Horne (Glasgow Warriors) – 19 caps; 2 tries, 1 con, 1 pen, 15 points
11. Sean Maitland (Saracens) – 20 caps; 3 tries, 15 points
10. Ruaridh Jackson (Harlequins) – 29 caps; 4 cons, 2 pens, 2 drops, 20 points
9. Henry Pyrgos CAPTAIN (Glasgow Warriors) – 17 caps; 4 tries, 20 points
1. Rory Sutherland (Edinburgh Rugby) – 2 caps
2. Stuart McInally (Edinburgh Rugby) – 8 caps
3. Moray Low (Exeter Chiefs) – 33 caps
4. Richie Gray (Toulouse) – 57 caps; 3 tries, 15 points
5. Jonny Gray (Glasgow Warriors) – 24 caps; 1 try
6. Josh Strauss (Glasgow Warriors) – 8 caps
7. John Barclay (Scarlets) – 51 caps; 4 tries, 20 points
8. Ryan Wilson (Glasgow Warriors) – 19 caps
Substitutes:
16. Fraser Brown (Glasgow Warriors) – 16 caps
17. Gordon Reid (Glasgow Warriors) – 17 caps
18. Willem Nel (Edinburgh Rugby) – 14 caps; 2 tries, 10 points
19. Tim Swinson (Glasgow Warriors) – 23 caps
20. John Hardie (Edinburgh Rugby) – 11 caps; 3 tries, 15 points
21. Greig Laidlaw (Gloucester) – 52 caps; 4 tries, 66 cons, 124 pens, 524 points
22. Huw Jones (Stormers) – uncapped
23. Sean Lamont (Glasgow Warriors) – 104 caps, 14 tries, 70 points
Huw Jones:
- Position: Centre
- Current Club: Stormers
- Date of Birth: 17/12/1993
- Height: 1.86m
- Weight: 96kg
- Caps: Uncapped
Stormers centre Huw Jones was included in the 27-man Scotland squad for the 2016 summer tour to Japan.
Born in Edinburgh and educated at Millfield School in Somerset, the uncapped 22-year-old replaces Glasgow Warriors stand-off Finn Russell, who sustained a head injury in the Guinness PRO12 Play-Off in Galway last weekend.
Despite being schooled south of the border, it was a gap year to South Africa in 2012 that sparked Jones’ rugby career, after he elected to stay and study at the University of Cape Town, winning the Varsity Cup in 2014 and scoring in the final.
He was then selected for Western Province, first in the under-21 squad and then the senior Vodacom Cup team, before being called up for the Stormers last year and making 21 appearances to date.
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