Scotland make no less than 14 changes for Portugal

Glasgow centre Stafford McDowall will captain a heavily rotated Scotland side, featuring 14 changes to the starting XV, for Saturday’s Autumn Test against Portugal at Murrayfield.

Tom Jordan is the sole player to retain his position from the team that faced a 32-15 defeat against South Africa. Meanwhile, key winger Darcy Graham returns to the lineup after missing the match against the Springboks due to a head injury.

Glasgow lock Alex Samuel and Edinburgh back-rower Ben Muncaster are set to earn their first caps as part of the starting forward pack.

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend on that red card and other missed opportunities

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Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend on that red card and other missed opportunities

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend believes his team had some “bad luck” in their 15-32 defeat to the Springboks at Murrayfield on Sunday.

Johnny Matthews, capped once during Scotland’s 2023 Rugby World Cup win over Romania, has been named among the replacements. Elliot Millar Mills and Rory Sutherland retain their spots on the bench, while Ewan Johnson, the Oyonnax lock who debuted in the summer, joins as a second-row replacement.

Nineteen-year-old Freddy Douglas – who is part of Edinburgh’s academy set-up – could make his Scotland debut from the bench, potentially becoming the youngest Scotland men’s debutant since 1963. Douglas, a standout for Scotland U20 in 2024, led in tackles and breakdown steals in the U20 Six Nations.

Fixture

Internationals

Scotland

59 - 21

Full-time

Portugal

All Stats and Data

Jamie Dobie is also included among the replacements after appearing in the first two autumn matches. Kyle Rowe returns after an injury kept him out of the South Africa game, and Matt Currie is set to make his first Scotland appearance at Murrayfield.

Scotland team:

15. Tom Jordan
14. Darcy Graham
13. Rory Hutchinson
12. Stafford McDowall
11. Arron Reed
10. Adam Hastings
9. George Horne
1. Jamie Bhatti
2. Patrick Harrison
3. Will Hurd
4. Alex Craig
5. Alex Samuel
6. Luke Crosbie
7. Ben Muncaster
8. Josh Bayliss

Replacements:
16. Johnny Matthews
17. Rory Sutherland
18. Elliot Millar Mills
19. Ewan Johnson
20. Freddy Douglas
21. Jamie Dobie
22. Matt Currie
23. Kyle Rowe

Team Form

Last 5 Games

35 - 16

35 - 29

16 - 15

18 - 32

31 - 19

7 - 21

31 - 42

6 - 34

56 - 14

40 - 30

2

Wins

3

1

Streak

2

16

Tries Scored

24

-16

Points Difference

55

3/5

First Try

3/5

2/5

First Points

3/5

3/5

Race To 10 Points

3/5