FINDLAY Thomson has been selected for the Scotland squad at the World Rugby U20 Trophy.

The East Lothian rugby starlet will fly out to Kenya for the tournament, which gets under way next weekend.

Scotland have been drawn in Pool A and will face off against Uruguay, USA and Zimbabwe.

Depending on their results, they will then go on to face a team from Pool B, which is made up of Spain, Samoa, Hong Kong China and the hosts.

Thomson, who will turn 19 during the tournament, spoke to Courier Sport last Thursday and said: “It was pretty much a shock really.

“I was involved in the squad through the Under-20 Six Nations but not playing.

“I did not expect to go with such a small squad going to Kenya.

“It is a pleasant surprise and now I am just starting to look forward to it in the last few days.

“I am delighted to be going and it is a huge opportunity.”

Scotland begin their campaign against Zimbabwe U20 on July 15 (8am BST) before taking on USA (12pm BST) on July 20. They round off the pool phase of the competition by facing Uruguay on July 25 (2pm BST), with the play-offs beginning on July 30.

Thomson, who is joined in the squad by Robbie Deans, who played for both Haddington and Musselburgh as a youngster, was part of the Scotland squad who travelled to Spain last weekend.

The Scots got the perfect preparation for the trip to Africa as they defeated their hosts 43-20 in Zamora.

Thomson, who attended Dunbar Grammar School and is now studying finance at the University of Glasgow, said that the three opposing countries brought their own challenges.

The centre, who plays for Watsonians, said: “We are playing countries we have not played before.

“It is definitely an exciting experience but we are going to have to be prepared for ourselves more than anything.

“We will see what comes our way.”

Kenny Murray’s squad contains 16 forwards and 12 backs, with 21 players returning to the U20 age-grade side after representing their country in the Under-20 Six Nations earlier this year.

The head coach said: “After our preparation match against Spain U20 last weekend, we are looking forward to heading to Nairobi in a couple of weeks’ time.

“We were happy with many elements of play during that match but it also highlighted what we must work on if we want to be successful in the World Rugby U20 Trophy.

“We’ve been able to name a strong squad ahead of the tournament next month, with some familiar faces people will have seen during the Under-20 Six Nations and some new guys who earned their first caps in Spain last weekend.

“With Duncan Munn out through injury, we’ve chosen Ben Afshar to join Liam as co-captain.

“Ben impressed us when he took on this role in Spain, and along with Liam, we think they make a strong pair to lead the team.

“This tournament is a massive test for the squad.

“Not only does Kenya provide us with some unfamiliar environmental factors – like altitude and heat – but we will also be up against some very strong teams, all hungry for the winning title and promotion to the Championship.”