Head coach Gregor Townsend has named a 38-man squad for the Six Nations, including six uncapped players
Wednesday 15 January 2020 13:41, UK
Stuart Hogg has been appointed as the new Scotland captain ahead of the Six Nations.
The 27-year-old full-back replaces Stuart McInally, who led the side during last year's unsuccessful World Cup campaign.
With 71 caps, Hogg is the most experienced member of the 38-man squad head coach Gregor Townsend has named for the Six Nations.
The former Glasgow Warriors player, who moved to Exeter Chiefs this season, has also toured with the British and Irish Lions on two occasions.
His first Test as captain will be away to Ireland in Dublin on February 1.
"We've put a bigger emphasis on form as a guide for our selection, with those picked backed to go out and grab their opportunity"
Townsend has also included six uncapped players in his Six Nations squad, with Glasgow Warriors trio Tom Gordon, Kyle Steyn and Ratu Tagive selected.
They are joined by Edinburgh back-row pair Luke Crosbie and Nick Haining, with Gloucester's former Scotland U20 lock, Alex Craig, also getting the nod.
Townsend has also handed recalls to centres Matt Scott, Huw Jones and Rory Hutchinson after all three were left out of the squad that travelled to Japan.
"We've put a bigger emphasis on form as a guide for our selection, with those picked backed to go out and grab their opportunity," added Townsend.
"A number of young players have broken through at their clubs, while the bulk of the squad [23 of 31] from Japan has been reselected based on some strong individual performances and huge effort throughout our World Cup camp.
"We're on to our next campaign now and it's going to be very tough given the competition we face. Ireland have only lost one championship game at home in the last five years, and England were in great form in Japan.
"There are some real quality players who have missed out on selection, either through injury or the form of others in the group and I'm sure they'll continue to knock hard on the squad selection door throughout the Six Nations period.
"It's a positive that we've depth in the number of positions and more players available to play than we did this time last season so let's hope that continues over the duration of the tournament."
Forwards: Simon Berghan, Jamie Bhatti, Magnus Bradbury, Fraser Brown, Alex Craig, Luke Crosbie, Scott Cummings, Allan Dell, Cornell du Preez, Zander Fagerson, Grant Gilchrist, Tom Gordon, Jonny Gray, Nick Haining, Stuart McInally, Willem Nel, Jamie Ritchie, Rory Sutherland, Ben Toolis, George Turner, Hamish Watson
Backs: Darcy Graham, Chris Harris, Adam Hastings, Stuart Hogg (c) George Horne, Rory Hutchinson, Sam Johnson, Huw Jones, Blair Kinghorn, Sean Maitland, Byron McGuigan, Ali Price, Henry Pyrgos, Finn Russell, Matt Scott, Kyle Steyn, Ratu Tagive
