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On Friday evening, 18-year-old tighthead prop Callum will look to make an impact when he comes off the bench for the Scotland under-20 squad in the Stadio Comunale Di Monigo in Treviso against what will be a physical Italy outfit.
It is round four of the age-grade Six Nations and the young Scots are still looking for their first win in this year’s competition.
Italy have lost two matches, but their win was a big one for them against England - 6-0 - in round two, so it shows how dangerous they can be.
Callum is the only member of Scotland’s matchday 23 who is still at school, but he has played very well in rounds one to three and is learning all the time - he has a big future ahead of him.
“Since coming to Strathallan, Callum has been an ambitious young man who has centered himself around trying to be the best person and player he can be,” Mr Henderson said.
“He is always looking for ways to improve and uses any feedback in as positive a way as he can. He has made such huge steps in every way since he joined us and as a coach and mentor he is great to work with - give him something to do and he gets it done.
“Being picked for the under-20s as a tighthead prop at such a young age has been a steep learning curve and was probably a bit of a shock to the system for him at the start, but Callum has learnt with every match and has become a better player.
“Italy will be another huge test for the team, but everyone at Strathallan is behind Callum and former pupil Andy Stirrat who starts in the centre.”
Callum, who was born in Redditch in England before moving to Fife aged four, is one of the current members of the Strathallan Rugby Academy headed up by the experienced Mr Henderson.
With access to some of the best facilities in Scotland, the Strathallan Rugby Academy provides a high-quality player experience that focuses on developing the player and supporting those with the greatest potential to be included in the programme.
Selected players are supported by physiotherapy, nutrition, psychology, strength and conditioning, post-game analysis, expert coaching and focused feedback.
And certainly, Callum has not had to look far for inspiration over the last few years as he has transitioned from a second-row into a tighthead because current Scotland number three Zander Fagerson - a British & Irish Lion - was, of course, a pupil at Strathallan previously.
Fagerson, just 26, will be winning his 46th Scotland cap in Rome on Saturday while Ed Kalman, who earned two caps for the national team in 2012 and served Glasgow Warriors superbly for many years, is now a teacher at Strathallan.
When you throw into the mix the fact that the likes of Jamie Ritchie, Matt Fagerson, George Horne, Murray McCallum, Ollie Smith and others also have connections to school then Norrie has plenty of good examples to look up to.
“Zander has been a real role model to me since I moved to tighthead and he is someone who I really look up to,” Callum, who will earn his fourth age-grade cap in Treviso, said.
“He has been very good at giving me advice and tips here and there and that has really helped. Even during this Six Nations I have bumped into him during our training camps at Oriam [on the outskirts of Edinburgh] and he is always happy to help me out which, as a young player, means a lot.
“It was definitely the right move for me [to move schools to Strathallan a few years ago] as I’ve been able to access a high level of rugby week in and week out while there are some great coaches at the school and I have been able to tap into their knowledge.
“At first when I was thinking about the calibre of players I’d be up against before the Six Nations age-grade tournament began the nerves were there, but as soon as you are on the pitch you have a job to do and like any game you have ever played there are two sets of posts and a rugby ball out there.
“The last few weeks have definitely been a challenge, but I have been learning the real technicalities of the tighthead position and I have taken on lots of knowledge and I am enjoying testing myself and being part of this team.
“I am just really enjoying being in the under-20s environment and learning from everyone around me, it has been a great couple of months so far.”
Scotland under-20s to face Italy: Robin Mc Clintock; Ross McKnight, Duncan Munn, Andy Stirrat, Ben Evans; Christian Townsend, Murray Redpath; Michael Jones, Gregor Hiddleston, Gregor Scougall, Josh Taylor, Max Williamson, Matthew Deehan, Tim Brown, Rhys Tait (C). Subs: Duncan Hood, Ali Rogers, Callum Norrie, Rudi Brown, Innes Hill, Jed Gelderbloom, Thomas Glendinning, Keiran Clark.
Italy v Scotland in the under-20 Six Nations takes place in Treviso on Friday evening at 7pm UK time and is live on the BBC iPlayer
Words by Gary Heatly
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