At 6ft 11in, lock Rob Carmichael is one of the tallest players in professional rugby.

He was born and raised in Hong Kong after his Scottish father and English/Welsh mother emigrated to Asia in the 1990s, and came through the ranks at Sandy Bay RFC.

The family returned to the UK in 2019, when he joined the Leicester Tigers academy. While at the Tigers he combined his rugby with a Sports Science degree at the University of Nottingham, playing BUCS Super Rugby.

He also made two Premiership Cup appearances and featured in all five of England U20’s matches in the 2023 U20 Six Nations, while remaining eligible for Scotland through his father.

Carmichael joined Edinburgh on an initial loan in February 2024 before signing a three-year deal with the capital club.

He made an immediate impression with Edinburgh ‘A’ in the FOSROC Super Series Sprint, scoring twice and earning a Player of the Match award against Watsonians. That form earned him a place on Scotland’s 2024 summer tour of the Americas as a development player.

He made his Edinburgh debut off the bench against Gloucester in the EPCR Challenge Cup in December 2024.

A week later he represented Emerging Scotland against Italy U23 at Hive Stadium.

He went on to make his URC bow against Scarlets and featured in the Challenge Cup quarter-final win over the Vodacom Bulls.