McVie and Blyth-Lafferty thrilled as Scotland U20 return to top tier

• 19 Jul 2024
• Features

Scotland U20 secured an emphatic victory over USA U20 in the World Rugby U20 Trophy final on Wednesday night, booking their ticket back to the top-tier World Rugby U20 Championship in 2025.

Edinburgh Rugby academy players Euan McVie and Jerry Blyth-Lafferty, both key contributors to the win, shared their excitement about the achievement.

Lock McVie, who bagged a hat-trick in the final, hailed the team spirit and the significance of promotion.

“It was special,” McVie said. “Such a good group and I think two years of tough, hard work has paid off, so absolutely buzzing.”

He emphasised the impact this return will have on the younger players’ development: “There’s guys who’ve got two years left in them who are performing at under-20s already, which is just incredible.

“In Scottish rugby, we need that for the development of under-20s. We need to show ourselves on the big stage and there’s no better way to do that than playing against the likes of New Zealand, South Africa, Australia and the big leagues.”

McVie also couldn’t stress enough the importance of the passionate Scottish crowd at Hive Stadium, the home of Edinburgh Rugby.

“The fans were incredible, I’m really speechless,” he admitted. “The fans make it so much easier. They play a massive part and we can’t do without them.”

Blyth-Lafferty, who shared the victory moment with his younger brother Ollie, reflected on the team’s journey.

“The whole tournament has been good fun,” Blyth-Lafferty said. “We’re quite a tight group this year, so it’s been nice. The results have been good as well, especially to do it with my little brother. It was good fun.”

He echoed McVie’s sentiment about the promotion: “Absolutely delighted to get the boys back up to Tier 1 rugby, especially for Ollie [Bly-Lafferty, his younger brother] as well. Get to see them go head-to-head with some of the world-class youth players next year.”