“It’s good to get back out there, good game today, it’s been fun.

“It was a bit scruffy, lot of penalties out there, it’s a lot of people’s first game in a while.

“A lot of penalties and a lot of decisions that made the game go end-to-end probably a bit more than we’d like.

“But we won the battle and stuck in the arm wrestle.”

Sam was full of praise for players playing their first league game having jumped across from union, and the experienced players who helped them out.

“It’s different, you’ve got to take a different approach to it.

“You’ve got to be always helping each other on the pitch, and I think we did that well today, all the lads who know what they’re doing, and the ones who are a bit unsure.

“But I think everyone grasped it really well. It showed that we stuck in and did the basics correctly.”

The team made a late decision to take the knee before kick-off. They spoke as a collective and decided they wanted to do it as a show of inclusivity for Rugby League in Scotland. 

Sam explained:

“We just spoke about it in the changing room before, whether we were gonna do it or not, we just said ‘yeah, we’ll do it’.

“It speaks to our belief that Rugby League should be an inclusive sport that all are welcome to be a part of. All the lads agreed it’s what we want to do and show our thoughts as a unit.”

Next up for the U20s is a trip to Leigh to face the England Community Lions, for the first time since the two sides drew in 2019. 

On the trip, Sam commented:

“We just need to tidy up the game, build on what we did today, and just sort little things like basic skills, taking control of the ruck, and then I think we’ve got a very good chance next week.”

And it didn’t go unnoticed that Sam was sporting a ‘stylish’ mullet.

He added:

“It was a lockdown thing, I then I got rid of it, and then it started again in October. It’s staying until I fancy it going! I haven’t decided.”