Glasgow and Edinburgh will provide A sides for the new FOSROC Super Series with a development side based on the Scotland U20 team also due to take part in the revamped Super6 format.

Previously known as the FOSROC Super6, the part-time professional league has rebranded as the FOSROC Super Series but in keeping with last year’s format will be split into a Sprint Series and a Championship.

The Super Series Sprint will include a Glasgow Warriors A side and an Edinburgh A side as well as the six traditional teams: Ayrshire Bulls, Boroughmuir Bears, Heriot’s, Southern Knights, Stirling Wolves and Watsonians.

The six teams will play each other once while also facing one of the two URC sides. The initiative is designed to give Scottish players more high-level game time while bringing through the next generation with the Super Series Sprint due to start from 7 April.

Edinburgh will play Heriot’s Rugby, Southern Knights and Watsonians while Glasgow take on Ayrshire Bulls, Boroughmuir Bears and Stirling Wolves before both step down to provide support to their professional teams as their seasons conclude.

Read more: Rugby Fixtures

Then from the last weekend in July, the FOSROC Super Series Championship will take place with seven teams, the six Super Series sides plus a team built upon the current and future Scotland U20 sides, competing.

The new development side has been added to try and better prepare Scotland’s players for the rigours of U20 rugby, where for example their opponents in the U20 Six Nations are often already playing first-team professional rugby on a semi-regular basis.

Related: Scotland Six Nations squad

Scottish rugby’s performance director Jim Mallinder said: “It’s a hugely exciting time for those involved in FOSROC Super Series rugby. With its expansion to include more teams and a different structure comes a time to reflect on how that gap between amateur and professional has been bridged in the last four years.

“Since 2019, 34 players who were registered with FOSROC Super6 teams have gone on to play professionally with either Glasgow Warriors or Edinburgh Rugby. In addition, 21 of those players have signed contracts with one of the two sides, with six earning full international caps for Scotland.

“Six former FOSROC Super6 Head Coaches; Pete Murchie, Pete Horne, Stevie Lawrie, Ciaran Beattie, Rob Chrystie and Fergus Pringle and two Assistant Coaches, Scott Lawson and Chris Laidlaw, have moved into full-time professional performance coaching environments.

“We’re committed to providing more high-performance opportunities for those players striving to become regulars in Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors match day squads. Another commitment we’re making is to provide a higher-level competition and increased time in high-performance environments for our U20.”

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