INTERNATIONAL RUGBY will return to McDiarmid Park in November when the Perth stadium hosts the Scotland A clash with the touring Wallabies, writes Steve Scott, rugby correspondent.

The second string Scottish team were reintroduced successfully in the summer when they reached the final of the six-team Churchill Cup tournament in Canada, defeating their English counterparts and a full-strength host nation team along the way.

With the Australians requesting midweek matches for their tour of the British Isles this autumn, they will meet Scotland A on the evening of November 21 at a kick-off time to be confirmed.

McDiarmid Park has proved a highly-successful venue for representative rugby since the first match staged there in 1995, with the last visit being the Scotland’s team’s record 100-8 defeat of Japan in front of a full house in November 2004.

Scotland A have played there four times, twice against Italy in 1995 and 2003, against Argentina in 1999 and Samoa in 2000.

McDiarmid was also the popular home ground of the Caledonia Reds team until they were absorbed into Glasgow Caledonians in 1998.

SRU chief executive Gordon McKie said, “The Scotland A team is an important part of the process of developing players for the rigours of international rugby and as long as such fixtures can be accommodated sensibly into the calendar then we welcome the opportunity they represent.

“Rugby followers in the Caledonia region are renowned for their enthusiastic and vocal support of the Scotland team—as was the case when Scotland played against Japan in 2004 and against the Barbarians in Aberdeen last year.

“It is pleasing that we can give them the chance to see international rugby on their own doorstep.

“One of the by-products of previous fixtures being staged in Perth is the tremendous working relationship established between the SRU, St Johnstone FC and Perth and Kinross District Council and we look forward to working in partnership with them again on this occasion.”

Stewart Duff, managing director of St Johnstone FC, said, “We are delighted that Scottish Rugby has chosen McDiarmid Park to stage the A international particularly against such a strong nation as Australia.

“Some 90% of the population of Scotland can reach our ground by car in 90 minutes and we feel sure that the public will support the event in good numbers.”