Five players called up ahead of Six Nations opener

27 Jan 2025

Gregor Townsend has called up five players ahead of the opening weekend of the Guinness Six Nations when Scotland take on Italy at Scottish Gas Murrayfield.

EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 14: Scotland's Ollie Smith in action during a friendly match between Emerging Scotland and Italy U-23's at the Hive Stadium, on December 14, 2024, in Edinburgh, Scotland. (Photo by Ewan Bootman / SNS Group)

Euan Ferrie, Cameron Henderson, Ewan Johnson, Alexander Masibaka and Ollie Smith have all joined up with the squad.

Masibaka will replace Josh Bayliss in the squad, who sustained a groin injury playing for Bath in their victory over Sale Sharks. He will remain with Bath for further assessment to determine exact timescales.

Alexander Masibaka has impressed this season in Pro D2 with French side Soyaux-Angoulême. The 23-year-old is currently on loan from Montpellier having previously played for the Western Force. He plays across the back-row and qualifies for Scotland through his Paisley born mother.

Uncapped Euan Ferrie was a member of the URC winning Glasgow Warriors squad last season and has previously trained with the national team. Since returning from injury Ferrie has played the last three games for Warriors, appearing in both the second and back row.

Cameron Henderson made his debut for Scotland in 2023 against Italy before sustaining a knee injury at the end of the year. He has since bounced back, playing in Leicester Tigers last seven matches.

Ewan Johnson made his debut on Scotland’s summer tour last year, in a 73-12 victory over Canada. The Oyonnax second-row also made his first appearance at Scottish Gas Murrayfield against Portugal in 2024 and played in the Scotland A victory over Chile at the end of the year.

Ollie Smith made his long-awaited comeback in a Glasgow Warriors jersey at the weekend in their win over Connacht and caps off his return from injury with a call-up to the Scotland squad after playing for Emerging Scotland at the tail end of last year.

Scotland squad for the 2025 Guinness Six Nations (caps in brackets):

Forwards (23)

Ewan Ashman – Edinburgh Rugby (22)
Jamie Bhatti – Glasgow Warriors (35)
Gregor Brown – Glasgow Warriors (4)
Dave Cherry – Edinburgh Rugby (11)
Luke Crosbie – Edinburgh Rugby (12)
Rory Darge – Co-Captain – Glasgow Warriors (25)
Jack Dempsey – Glasgow Warriors (22)
Matt Fagerson – Glasgow Warriors (50)
Zander Fagerson – Glasgow Warriors (70)
Euan Ferrie – Glasgow Warriors (uncapped)
Grant Gilchrist – Edinburgh Rugby (75)
Jonny Gray – Bordeaux Bègles (77)
Cameron Henderson – Leicester Tigers (1)
Patrick Harrison – Edinburgh Rugby (3)
Will Hurd – Leicester Tigers (4)
Ewan Johnson – Oyonnax (4)
Jack Mann – Glasgow Warriors (uncapped)
Alexander Masibaka – Soyaux-Angoulême (uncapped)
D’Arcy Rae – Edinburgh Rugby (2)
Jamie Ritchie – Edinburgh Rugby (54)
Pierre Schoeman – Edinburgh Rugby (37)
Rory Sutherland – Glasgow Warriors (37)
Marshall Sykes – Edinburgh Rugby (1)

Backs (16)

Fergus Burke – Saracens (uncapped)
Matt Currie – Edinburgh Rugby (4)
Jamie Dobie – Glasgow Warriors (9)
Darcy Graham – Edinburgh Rugby (42)
George Horne – Glasgow Warriors (34)
Rory Hutchinson – Northampton Saints (8)
Huw Jones – Glasgow Warriors (53)
Tom Jordan – Glasgow Warriors (3)
Blair Kinghorn – Toulouse (55)
Stafford McDowall – Glasgow Warriors (8)
Finn Russell – Co-Captain – Bath Rugby (82)
Arron Reed – Sale Sharks (3)
Kyle Rowe – Glasgow Warriors (9)
Duhan van der Merwe – Edinburgh Rugby (44)
Ollie Smith – Glasgow Warriors (9)
Ben White – Toulon (24)

 

RELATED

The Snuts pre-match performance ahead of Scotland v New Zealand Scotland Men The Snuts pre-match performance ahead of Scotland v New Zealand Thu 29 Oct 2026 Wallaby wow factor awaits Scotland Men Wallaby wow factor awaits Wed 28 Oct 2026 Scotland squad named for Nations Championship home games Scotland Men Scotland squad named for Nations Championship home games Mon 26 Oct 2026 Nations Championship Scotland Men Nations Championship Fri 23 Oct 2026 Archie Goodburn to deliver match ball at Scotland v Australia Scotland Men Archie Goodburn to deliver match ball at Scotland v Australia Wed 21 Oct 2026 Josh Kerr to deliver match ball at Scotland v New Zealand Scotland Men Josh Kerr to deliver match ball at Scotland v New Zealand Fri 16 Oct 2026 Exclusive first look: New Archive Collection revealed Scotland Men Exclusive first look: New Archive Collection revealed Thu 8 Oct 2026 Terrace 22: A New Way to Experience Matchday at Scottish Gas Murrayfield Scotland Men Terrace 22: A New Way to Experience Matchday at Scottish Gas Murrayfield Wed 7 Oct 2026 One year to go: The Rugby World Cup 2027 Scotland Men One year to go: The Rugby World Cup 2027 Thu 1 Oct 2026 Nations Championship Hemisphere Shield Unveiled Scotland Men Nations Championship Hemisphere Shield Unveiled Tue 29 Sep 2026 Marathon Matt set for new sporting challenge Scotland Men Marathon Matt set for new sporting challenge Wed 23 Sep 2026 Scotland v New Zealand Sold Out: VIP & Hospitality Packages Still Available Scotland Men Scotland v New Zealand Sold Out: VIP & Hospitality Packages Still Available Thu 10 Sep 2026 Scottish Rugby x YETI products now available to buy online Scotland Men Scottish Rugby x YETI products now available to buy online Tue 18 Aug 2026 By the Numbers: Scotland’s Nations Championship Southern Series Scotland Men By the Numbers: Scotland’s Nations Championship Southern Series Tue 28 Jul 2026 How the 2026/27 away kit was built on stone and ice Scotland Men How the 2026/27 away kit was built on stone and ice Wed 22 Jul 2026 Scottish Rugby and Macron launch Away Kit Scotland Women Scottish Rugby and Macron launch Away Kit Wed 22 Jul 2026 Roundup: The Nations Championship Southern Series Scotland Men Roundup: The Nations Championship Southern Series Tue 21 Jul 2026 Match Report: Fiji 17-33 Scotland Scotland Men Match Report: Fiji 17-33 Scotland Sat 18 Jul 2026 Scotland team pay tribute to Scott Hastings Scotland Men Scotland team pay tribute to Scott Hastings Fri 17 Jul 2026 Fiji and Scotland to celebrate record-breaking matchday Scotland Men Fiji and Scotland to celebrate record-breaking matchday Fri 17 Jul 2026