Ollie Leatherbarrow earns first Scotland call-up for Nations Championship

Ollie Leatherbarrow has received his first Scotland call-up after head coach Gregor Townsend named a 37-player squad for three home Nations Championship matches in November. BBC Sport reported that the uncapped Newcastle back-row forward is included for the fixtures against New Zealand, Australia and Japan, while Edinburgh forwards Magnus Bradbury and Freddy Douglas have been left out.

Leatherbarrow, 24, was born in Macclesfield and qualifies to represent Scotland through his grandmother, who is from Perth. He has previously played for Scotland at under-16 and under-20 level. His club career began at Exeter Chiefs before he moved to Newcastle in 2023. The selection brings him into the senior squad, but he has yet to win his first cap.

Townsend has also selected Glasgow Warriors hooker Seb Stephen, who made his international debut against Fiji in July's Nations Championship match. Stephen is one of three hookers in the group, alongside Ewan Ashman and Gregor Hiddleston. Bradbury and Douglas are absent despite their club form being highlighted in the BBC report; it did not give a reason for either omission.

The forward group includes Rory Darge, Jack Dempsey, Matt Fagerson and Jamie Ritchie, along with Josh Bayliss and Liam McConnell. Jonny Gray is listed among the selected players, as are Scott Cummings and Alex Craig. Leatherbarrow is part of a contingent of 21 forwards, with 16 backs completing the squad announced for the November programme.

Sione Tuipulotu is named as captain in a back division that includes Finn Russell, Blair Kinghorn, Huw Jones, Darcy Graham and Duhan van der Merwe. Fergus Burke, Tom Jordan and Rory Hutchinson are also selected. The scrum-half options in the published squad are Ben White, George Horne and Jamie Dobie.

Scotland will host New Zealand at Murrayfield on 7 November, Australia on 15 November and Japan on 21 November. The Nations Championship then concludes at Twickenham over the weekend of 28-29 November. Those final fixtures will be determined by the northern and southern hemisphere standings, taking account of both the November games and the matches played in July.