Taylor for the Uproar

Being Taylor’s first year in the Under-20’s camp he has done well to cement himself a place in the squad by earning a starting position in the second row for every game so far.

Taylor attained his first try for Scotland in the final moments of their game against France. The continuous fight from the Scots for a sustained period of time saw them rewarded with a try for their efforts when Taylor twisted and turned over to secure the ball down on the try line.

Josh said: “It was a team effort to get that final try in the game against France. I didn’t realise it in the moment and didn’t celebrate too much as we were still focusing on the game, but afterwards the realisation kicked in and it was an amazing feeling knowing that I had scored a try for my country.

“Playing for your country is something every sports person wants under their belt but scoring for Scotland, and on home soil, has made my U20 experience something else that I can’t put into words.”

Taylor qualifies to represent Scotland, and proudly sings our national anthem, through this mother whose family is originally from Dunfermline. Although born and living in England, he’s always been aware of his Scottish blood lines.

He said: “I’ve always travelled up and down to Scotland to see family and it’s amazing being up here, it sometimes can be a bit tricky the travelling due to covid in the last few years and the amount of storms Scotland have but I always make sure to get up to train and play.

Having trained with the London Irish’s Academy for several years, Taylor made the switch to Ealing Trailfinders in 2019 when he began his academic studies in Sport and Exercise Science, at Brunel University.

Taylor holds a bright future for himself in rugby and hopes to wear the thistle many more times as he proves to be vital asset in the second row, but can switch around the pitch when needed and play in the back row.

Josh added “I’m defiantly hoping for a lifelong career in rugby, and if I can mix my degree into that I think I’ll be in a good place, but at this moment I’m just playing and focusing on my game in the present moment, I want to stick in with Scotland and will just see where I am in the next five to ten years with it all.

With the team now entering their last two games of the Under-20 Six Nations tournament (They will play their Italian counterparts tomorrow [Friday 11 March] in Treviso) the squad are focusing on ‘belief’ to use as a winning mindset template.

“France was a tough game, all of them have been, but we’re only thinking positively for these final matches, as we have proven we can be dominant and get tries so it’s all down to believing in ourselves.

‘’We all have individual debrief sessions with Kenny Murray and Shade Munro, and they both have helped me massively with my position leads in line outs and scrumming, where I can be better in my techniques and offer myself more on the pitch.’’ Josh said.

Never experienced anything like this in his life before, Taylor feels he’s adapted well under the pressure of playing in front of the crowds at over 3,000 when at DAM Health Stadium in Edinburgh.

Josh said: ‘’I try to go into every game with a cool head on me and treat it like any other match but once you come through the tunnel with the team and realise the speed and the noise for rugby, you then get the feel for an international game.’’