Murchie to join Scotland summer tour as Assistant Coach

Glasgow Warriors Assistant Coach Pete Murchie has been invited to join the Scotland coaching staff for their 2021 summer tour, following this afternoon’s confirmation of the tour programme by Scottish Rugby.

Primarily focusing on defence whilst Steve Tandy is part of the British and Irish Lions coaching team, the 35-year-old will link up with the national setup for a tour that will see Scotland travel to face Romania and Georgia on successive weekends in July.

The tour will also feature a Scotland A fixture against an opponent yet to be confirmed, with venues, kick-off times and broadcast details for all three fixtures all also still to be finalised.

Murchie’s appointment marks the latest milestone in his impressive fledgling coaching career, having joined the Warriors earlier this year after impressing in his time in charge of Ayr RFC and Ayrshire Bulls.

He made 116 appearances for the club during an illustrious playing career that included a Guinness PRO12 winners medal in 2014/15, whilst the former full-back also earned three caps for Scotland and was part of Scotland A’s unbeaten campaigns in 2010/11 and 2011/12.

Murchie will join a coaching team that will be led by former Glasgow Warriors scrum-half and Assistant Coach Mike Blair, who takes charge of the national team for the first time following Gregor Townsend’s appointment with the British and Irish Lions.

A veteran of 85 caps for Scotland, Blair made 12 appearances for the Warriors during the 2015/16 season before transitioning to a coaching role as part of Townsend’s backroom staff at Scotstoun.

The 2009 British and Irish Lion then followed Townsend to the national setup, where he has served as an Assistant Coach since the summer of 2017.

John Dalziel will continue as an Assistant Coach for the tour having joined the Scotland setup in the summer of 2020, making it a trio of Glasgow coaches past and present on the coaching ticket.

Former Scotland 7s Head Coach Dalziel initially joined the Warriors in April 2019 on the run to the 2019 Guinness PRO14 Final, before serving as Forwards Coach under Dave Rennie in the 2019/20 campaign prior to accepting a role with the senior national squad.

Scrum Coach Pieter de Villiers completes the coaching setup for this summer’s tour, with Scottish Rugby Director of High Performance Jim Mallinder also joining the group to provide additional support.

Speaking to scottishrugby.org following the announcement, Blair said: “I’d like to thank Gregor and Jim for this opportunity to lead the Scotland summer tour and I’m looking forward to continuing to build the positive culture and results we have achieved in recent months.

“This tour gives us the chance to work with a wider group of players and see how they can step up into the international game, whilst also continuing to look to improve with our established Scotland players.

“The three matches will present very different challenges and as a squad and coaching group we will be looking to continue to create depth and competition for places within strong team performances.”