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BEATTIE CALLED UP FOR SOUTH AFRICA TOUR


John Beattie, the uncapped 20-year-old Glasgow Warriors No 8, has been called up as an additional player for the Scotland tour of South Africa.

Beattie will travel as a precaution to provide cover in the back-row, after the injury that forced Allister Hogg’s departure from Scotland’s midweek 66-19 victory over the Barbarians.

Hogg suffered hamstring pain in the second half but, happily, a scan revealed no tear. He is now on a programme of active rehabilitation.

Scotland coach Frank Hadden said today: “Ali ran this morning and is making progress. We feel however that it makes sense to take some cover with us.

“It’s a very tough decision with regards to the Scotland under-21 team who are leaving today for their world championship in France but we hope events mean that John will still be able to play some part in that tournament.

“In any event John’s involvement on the South African tour is a fantastic development opportunity for him.”

Beattie said: “It’s a win/win situation for me. Being called up as cover for South Africa is going to be an awesome experience and all being well with injuries it’ll be fantastic if I can finish off with the under-21s given that I’ve been playing with many of the guys in the squad since I was 17.”


John Beattie (Glasgow Warriors)
No.8. Born 21/11/1985 in Glasgow. 1.93m 105.5kg
John Beattie, son of former Scotland and British Lions international forward of the same name, joined Glasgow on an apprentice contract in summer 2004 and made his first competitive start for the team in the Celtic League match against Ospreys at Swansea in October 2004. He has played under-18 and under-19 rugby for Glasgow and has represented Scotland at under-18, under-19, and under-21 levels. His under-19 honours included playing at No.8 in all five of Scotland’s matches in the IRB world championship in Durban, South Africa, in April 2004. Because of injury his under-21 international debut was delayed until March 2005, when he made a replacement appearance in the Northampton victory against England in Scotland’s final championship match. He subsequently played in all five matches in the under-21 world championship in Mendoza, Argentina, and after recovering from illness he returned to the team in 2006 for the 24-21 victory against Ireland at Athlone as well as playing in the 21-14 win against Italy in Benevento. He was educated at Glasgow Academy and played for Aberdeen Grammar School FP in the BT Premier first division during season 2002/2003. John William Beattie is a member of the West of Scotland Institute of Sport and the Glasgow Rugby Academy.
International record: uncapped

This article was originally posted on 3-Jun-2006, 11:50 by Hugh Barrow.
Last updated by Hugh Barrow on 4-Jun-2006, 13:42.