WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS BECKON FOR UNDER-20S
Tuesday, 02 June 2009#

Samoa are their first opponents in the tournament (5 June) with England (9 June) and hosts Japan (13 June) also lying in wait in Pool B.

Japan are a somewhat unknown force however Scotland under-20s faced Samoa last year in the Championships and know all about England after they denied them their first ever Triple Crown in this year’s 6 Nations tournament.

Under-20 Head Coach, Rob Moffat, explained: "We do have footage of the Samoa tie last year and we will also be examining their recent warm up match against New Zealand. It’s important to always take stock of your opposition.

"We know what England have to offer and by the time we play Japan they will have already played two games. I think for the opening encounter, however, we have to concentrate on our own game."

The last time Scotland played England was back in March when the sides met in the Six Nations competition.

Despite heroic home victories over Wales (18-17) and Ireland (35-20), Scotland could not overcome arch rivals England away in Worcester (6-20), in the deciding match.

Moffat is eager not to let past experiences affect how his team will approach the game: “England are beatable”, said Moffat, "When we played them in the Six Nations we didn’t play as well as we had in other games.
“Whenever the sides meet there is always the whole Scotland/England factor but you don’t get any more points for beating England, it is very important that we try and approach each game in the same way."

Scotland will be without prolific winger / centre Paul Loudon who has been ruled out through injury but the Scots remain confident they can deliver on the global platform.

Moffat added: "It’s very unfortunate for Paul, the lad played well for us in the 6 Nations and we wish him a speedy recovery. However, looking at the positives it opens a door for another talented youngster, Tom Brown."

"All the guys are really excited about the prospect of playing in the Championships. There is a winning mentality but also a real sense of just enjoying the experience.

"Some of our players will undoubtedly go on to be successful in the professional game but for others this event will mark the pinnacle of their rugby careers. They have a drive and desire to succeed."

Backs
Peter Jericevich (Glasgow Hawks) *, Henry Pyrgos (Wimbourne), Andrew White (Glasgow Hawks) **, Alex Dunbar (Selkirk) **, Robbie Johnston (Leeds University and Leeds Carnegie), James Knight (Bedford), Ashleah McCulloch (Aberdeen Grammar) **, Steven Aitken (Aberdeen Grammar) **, Grant Anderson (Ayr) *, Peter Horne (Glasgow Warriors), Tom Brown (Edinburgh Accies)*, Robbie McGowan (Stirling County)

Forwards
Fraser Brown CAPTAIN (Watsonians)*, Finlay Gillies (Heriot’s) **, Gavin Cameron (Stirling County) **, David Morton (Bridgwater and Albion), Douglas Orr (Haddington) **, Grant Shiells (Kelso), Nick Campbell (Glasgow Hawks) **, Grant Gilchrist (Stirling County) *, Richard Gray (Glasgow Warriors), Robert Harley (West of Scotland) **, Struan Dewar (Heriot’s) **, Chris Fusaro (Heriot’s) *, Stuart McInally* (Watsonians), Ryan Wilson (London Scottish)

* Denotes Scottish National Contracted Academy
** Denotes a member of the Scottish Rugby National Academy supported by the Scottish Institute of Sport

Pool B, Tokyo, Prince Chichibu Memorial
England
Samoa
Scotland
Japan

Friday 5 June
Tuesday 9 June
Saturday 13 June Samoa v Scotland, Tokyo, kick-off 5pm
England v Scotland, Tokyo, kick-off 5pm
v Scotland, Tokyo, kick-off 3.05pm

Martin Currie are the proud sponsor of Scotland Women’s and age-grade rugby

This article was originally posted on 2-Jun-2009, 21:40 by Hugh Barrow.
Last updated by Hugh Barrow on 3-Jun-2009, 09:27.