Alex Grove has a confession. He did not really hear most of the players’ briefing at the start of last week. He was just stunned, because there on the flip chart in the front of the room was the team for next Saturday’s match and up there, on the page, was his name. After getting a taste for life in blue with the Scotland A team during the summer, he was about to make his full debut.
“I just sat looking at it,” he said yesterday. “I didn’t take in anything he [Andy Robinson, the head coach] said after that. It was all a bit of a blur, I was just staring at my name. It came as a shock, though it was great that I knew at the start of last week and have had seven days to come to terms with the idea that I will be starting for Scotland.
“I’m still massively excited but at least I have had time to get over my nerves and can concentrate on my game. I want to remember everything about the day but not let it affect the way I play.”
It has been a remarkable rise for the young Worcester player — he does not reach his 22nd birthday until the end of the month — who took up the sport only as a teenager when he was sent to Rugby School, though he does have Scottish blood running powerfully through his veins thanks to his grandfather, Ron Wylie, who moved from Glasgow to play football for Notts County before joining Aston Villa and then Birmingham City.
There was never any doubt about where his loyalties would lie. “He was the second person I rang,” Grove said yesterday. “He’s over the moon. He’ll be there on Saturday with my parents.”
Advertisement
With his grandfather’s influence, it is not just the Scottish but also the sporting gene that runs strong in the family. Ollie, his younger brother, is involved in the Exiles system and in the Scotland Under-20 squad, though he has played Under-16 rugby for England. “I was involved with the Exiles quite early and played age-group rugby for Scotland, so I never really had to make a decision,” Alex said. “Then playing for the A team in Romania in June was a stepping stone to where I am now.
“I set myself a goal of getting a cap this year but never thought it would be this soon. I just have to make the most of this chance. You always want to get to the next level and playing for the A team made me want international rugby more.
Grove is realistic enough to know that injuries have played a huge role in his sudden elevation to the national side, but there was still intense competition from Nick De Luca for the starting place and it was own form for Worcester and the skills he brings to the role that have earned him the call.
“It is important that we bring our back three into the game,” Robinson said. “Grove is one of our best catchers and passers, so that will be his specific role — to allow us to play wider and get our back three into the game.
“He has played well in the Nations Cup and come back and played well for his club. He has been working to improve his game, he had to work hard to get into that Worcester team and has done well there.”