Jamie Dobie Considers Autumn Nations Series a Pivotal Campaign for Scotland Spot

Jamie Dobie has described the Autumn Nations Series as a “massive campaign” for him personally, as he aims to secure his position within the Scotland squad. The Glasgow Warrior has been chosen as one of four scrum-halves for the squad, alongside George Horne, Ben White, and Ali Price, despite having played a significant portion of his recent rugby for both his club and national team on the wing. The transfer of Ali Price from Warriors to Edinburgh last season has created an opportunity for the 23-year-old Dobie to gain increased playing time. He participated in all four Tests during Scotland’s summer tour of the Americas. “I think it’s a massive campaign and season,” Dobie stated. He added, “I got my first cap three years ago from this series and had to wait almost two years to get my second cap.” Reflecting on past opportunities, he continued, “I missed out on that World Cup squad but I think coming back to the summer tour, it was a great opportunity for me. I ended up being involved in all four matches there, so that was massive for me personally.” Regarding his current form, he commented, “The start of the season with Glasgow has been relatively positive so I’m happy with where my rugby’s at and the direction it’s going.” Dobie expressed his hopes for the near future, saying, “Hopefully this is going to be a big few weeks to really cement a place in the squad and be involved in as many of the matches as possible.” While Dobie primarily identifies as a scrum-half, he has expressed his willingness to play on the wing if it enhances his prospects of participating in the upcoming matches against Fiji, South Africa, Portugal, and Australia. He affirmed, “I’m definitely happy playing both positions now and obviously the main thing is being involved.” Dobie further explained, “So whether that’s at scrum-half or wing, that would be the main benefit.” He clarified his primary role, stating, “I still see myself as playing scrum-half mostly and the additional benefit of being able to cover the wing.” He also noted, “Obviously on summer tour the two starts that I got were on the wing. So I only see that as a benefit for me, being able to cover those positions and obviously in the last couple of years with Franco (Smith) running the 6-2 (bench) and especially with that, I’ve spent plenty of time on the wing.” Concluding, he said, “So I’m more than comfortable to do that and I’m glad the coaches have the faith for me to play either.”