Outside centre Geordie Gwynn discussed his time with Emerging Scotland who faced Tonga XV during the autumn international period
Alongside fellow Trailfinder Josh Taylor, Geordie Gwynn was included in the Emerging Scotland squad that took on Tonga XV on 17 November.
Gwynn discussed his experience during the autumn and his key takeaways that he’s looking to implement in his game at Ealing Trailfinders.
“It was such a great experience. I got to see a lot of familiar faces as most of the squad were former U20s players so I knew most of them and the coaches as well,” he said.
“It was nice just to catch up with them as well and then have a tough opposition to play against as well come the weekend.
“We were told early in the training week that we would be playing the Tongan national team. It was a cool experience to play against players that I’ve watched on TV. It was an opportunity for me to challenge myself and to see where we were at as a team against a strong side.”
Whilst Emerging Scotland fell short of the win, Gwynn discussed some of the great learning experiences for the squad and for himself as an individual player.
“We gave a good showing given the result was nil-nil at half-time. I think the forwards fronted up well in the game.
“In the week, coaches had put emphasis on making the first collision and getting a low shot on them because they were a physically strong and big guys. But it was also being aware of their offloading game when tackling low because that was one of their strengths. There was a big emphasis on doubling up in the collisions.
“During the game, I think we did a pretty good job of nullifying the threat and imposing our game on them too.”
Geordie Gwynn and Josh Taylor
Geordie Gwynn and Josh Taylor were two of the only players who featured in the squad playing outside of Edinburgh and Glasgow.
“Nigel Owens who is the attack coach for Glasgow Warriors was leading our attack for the Tonga game so most of our shapes were in Glasgow’s playing style. It was different to the style of play we do at Trailfinders but I found that I adapted to the new shapes quickly. By the third session, myself, Josh Taylor and the Edinburgh boys had the formations locked in.
“My main takeaway from the experience was understanding the level of physicality of international rugby. We have physical games in the Champ but international rugby is even more intense. It’s made me want to really improve on my physicality at the Club which is something I’ll be working on moving forward.”
In the 2025/26 season, Gwynn has made five appearances in the Champ and scored two tries. Whilst he can play both wing and outside centre, Gwynn prefers to play in the centres.
He discussed how he feels like he’s evolved as a player so far this season.
“I think I’m a bit more confident in myself. This season is the first time that I’ve had the full pre-season to get into it and then I felt like I started well in the first few weeks. Then I just kept building on that and getting a bit more confident in myself.
“There had been a few injuries in the squad during preseason, so I had the opportunity to step up. Then I got good run of games at the start and the big one for us in preseason was at Edinburgh. Hopefully the coaches thought I did a good job in that fixture and I’ve been given opportunities to perform since.
“The confidence of having been around the squad a bit more compared to previous seasons and having the opportunities to make those connections has also made it a bit easier on the pitch.”
