ALASTAIR Kellock yesterday welcomed another two club players into the Glasgow fold and insisted he was delighted to see the door to Scotland's professional teams being pushed open again by native talent.
Glasgow coach Sean Lineen received some criticism last summer when he used money the Scottish Rugby Union handed over from the closure of the Borders to add a handful of overseas talent to his squad. He also signed up some of the Borders squad and yo
ung Scots talent, but it was the luring of Lome Fa'atau, Daryl Gibson, Michael Collins and Chris O'Young that raised most eyebrows.
Yesterday it was announced that Chris Kinloch, the Edinburgh Accies wing, and Stirling County's 6ft 8in lock Richie Gray, had both signed full-time contracts with Lineen's squad, the former after impressing with two tries for Glasgow in their recent Challenge Vaquerin success in France. They join GHA prop Jon Welsh, Calum Forrester and Ruaridh Jackson in stepping up, while Edinburgh similarly have seven new club players joining their ranks.
Kellock believes a balance is needed to strengthen pro teams, but insisted that there was no shortage of Scottish talent pushing through.
"You need to bring in guys like Daryl and Lome who have been there and done it at the highest level," he said, "so that when you sign young guys from the club scene you have people around them who know a bit about what it takes to be successful competing with the very best. But I'm delighted to see Chris and Richie get contracts because they have impressed me hugely in training and Chris really grabbed his chance out in France.
"Most of us in the Glasgow squad came from Scottish clubs so we know the talent is out there. These young lads are now miles ahead physically of where we were when we first stepped into pro rugby, and so they don't need the same catch-up time as we did.
"It does feel like there is a never-ending stream of guys coming in, but the benefit for the squad as a whole is that, now, every position has two or three players you feel could start every week. Richie Vernon was another who showed up well in France. We already knew he was quality, but to think we already have Kelly Brown and Johnnie Beattie vying for the No8 jersey, and we've got James Eddie and Stevie Swindall to come back from injury to compete for back-row slots, it's pretty exciting."
Kinloch, a 6ft 1in wing-cum-centre, is just 19, but he has been turning heads through club and age-grade rugby and with the Scotland sevens team, with whom he made his debut in New Zealand fully 18 months ago,
while Gray, who only turns 19 on Sunday but is already an athletic near-19 stone forward, will pose a new threat to Kellock in the second row.
The full article contains 493 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
