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As the Scots prepare to face New Zealand, Argentina and Tonga at Murrayfield, first up is a showdown with the Americans. Scotland star man, Duhan Van Der Merwe will be the star of the show on Saturday as the Edinburgh winger will make his 50th appearance for his country. He remains the top try scorer of all-time and will no doubt be hoping to add to that tally against USA. While Duhan’s wealth of experience will be celebrated at Murrayfield, Townsend has also taken the opportunity to give some youngsters a chance. Edinburgh flanker, Liam McConnell has been selected for the first XV to make his debut, while hooker, Harri Morris is also set to acquire his first Scotland cap from the bench. With French-based players such as Finn Russell, Blair Kinghorn, Ben White and Tom Jordan currently unavailable for selection, the Scotland coach has an opportunity to bed in the next generation against a side they haven’t face at Murrayfield for a quarter of a century. Regarding the debutant, Townsend said: “We’ve selected Liam on what he’s been doing with Edinburgh, but also his potential. Liam really impressed us back in the under-20s and whenever we’ve had him in our environment, it’s his aggression and his effort. “We’ve seen an all-round game from him already this season. His skills in attack, with his little short passes, off loads, his ball-carrying ability and his confidence to show his skills under pressure. He was one of the fittest players coming through Edinburgh’s pre-season, so he’s put in the work and now he’s getting the rewards.” The 21-year old was a regular feature for the under-20 squad that had many games in training against the first team. Reportedly, the Edinburgh man was involved in an altercation with the intimidating figure of prop, Pierre Schoeman during one of the games, showing he’s not afraid of a challenge. In what will be a milestone match for the South African-born winger, at still only 30-years old, Townsend believes we haven’t seen the last of him yet. He said: “he’s created so many special moments. It’s hard to believe that his debut was just five years ago. “So to get 50 caps within that five years shows how important he’s been for us in terms of being selected whenever he’s been available, his own consistency and durability, and how he has evolved his game. When he first came in, he was a great ball-carrier who needed to develop his defence, which he has done. He’s been a defence leader now for the last couple of seasons. “He has worked really hard on his contact area and I think last season showed his ability to put others into space, so his game is growing, it needs to keep growing like all our players, but it’s great that we’ve had him for the last five years and there’s a lot more to come.” The Scotland coach also gave an update on the fitness of Zander Fagerson and Rory Darge, who he is hoping will both be available for the New Zealand clash on November 8th. He stated: “Zander trained with the team on Tuesday and Wednesday, we did a live session out there yesterday and he took a full part in that. Rory isn’t at that stage right now so he’s still working with the physios.” Your next rugby read: Scotland Autumn Nations Series squad announced for USA: Edinburgh flanker straight in for debut, Duhan earns 50th cap
