Newcastle Falcons vs Exeter Chiefs Programme

“I linked up with Heriot’s and it kind
of started taking off from there, but I
definitely benefited from the experience
of getting rejected and having to go out
into the real world. It means you don’t
take professional rugby for granted,
and it probably humbles you a little bit
in terms of fully appreciating where you
are as a pro sportsman.
“I wasn’t somebody who left school
and thought I’m definitely going to be
a professional rugby player, so in that
sense it wasn’t a body blow when I didn’t
get signed up straightaway. I just played
rugby because I enjoyed it, and I still do.
I know some people in the profession
who just treat rugby as a job and maybe
don’t like it, but for me since the age
of seven I’m just a guy who loves the
game and plays it because I get pleasure
from it.”
Recalling his early foray into the pro
rugby ranks, McCallum expands on his
ability to pack down at both loose-head
and tight-head prop, saying: “I made my
debut for Edinburgh in November 2016,
coming on from the bench at home to
Treviso. I was still an academy player
that year but a lot of their tight-heads
had got injured, banned or called up
for Scotland, and I ended up playing 21
games in my first season.
“I’ve always played on both sides of the
scrum, and in that first season where I
was involved in 23 games (there were
two where I was on the bench but didn’t
come on), 13 were at tight-head and 10
were at loose-head.”
Proudly earning three Scotland caps, he
says: “The first involvement I had was in
the autumn of 2017 when I was brought
in for a training camp, and I made my
debut in the Six Nations away to Wales
in February 2018.
“
I just played
rugby because
I enjoyed it,
and I still do.
“It was an unbelievable experience – Jon
Welsh started and I came on from the
bench – but when guys returned from
injury and suspension I was out of the
squad. I came back in for the summer
tour when we went to the USA, Canada
and Argentina. I played the first two
tests against Canada and America, then
had a very interesting week in rural
northern Argentina!
“In club terms I played for Edinburgh
from 2016 to 2021, at which point I was
told I wasn’t being kept on. Things were
a little bit up in the air for a while and I
ended up getting a shot with Glasgow,
who had lost a few guys to Scotland and
the Lions. I signed a six-month contract
with a view to maybe extending it,
and I actually played at home against
Newcastle in a pre-season game at
Scotstoun.
“The Falcons won that night and it
PLAYER INTERVEIW - MURRAY MCCALLUM
13