RUGBY ace Harvey Elms has retained his place in the Scotland 7s squad for the next leg of the HSBC World Series in Sydney.

Elms, from North Berwick, will likely win his third 7s cap Down Under, and is joined in the squad by Edinburgh Rugby duo Sean Kennedy and Glenn Bryce.

Scotland will face hosts Australia, USA and Canada in their pool and will be boosted by the fact that two of their three pool games will kick off in the evening, with day-time temperatures predicted to top 30C at Allianz Stadium.

Also in the squad is 22-year-old former Scotland U20 cap Alec Coombes of London Scottish, who earns a call-up with six players unavailable.

John Dalziel, head coach, said: “We’re trying to strengthen the depth of the 7s squad and had some young guys play their first tournaments in Dubai and Cape Town and do really well.

“We’re expecting some real physicality from the three teams in our pool. We’re going to have to match their dynamism and power if we’re going to get anything out of the tournament.”

And the Scots made a good start to their campaign, thrashing Canada 52-5 in their opening game this morning (Friday).

The Scots face USA and Australia on Saturday.