Scotland call up two rookies for Autumn Tests amid notable absentees and returning No 8

McConnell, 21, has made a fine start to the season for his club, playing in all three of their URC games and was particularly impressive in their big win over Benetton on Friday. A former Scotland Under-20 captain, the flanker also skipped Emerging Scotland against Italy Under-23s last season.

Morris, 24, has not featured in a competitive game this season for Edinburgh but the hooker showed up well in pre-season, most notably against Doncaster Knights where his aggressive tackling drew plaudits.

McConnell and Morris are joined in the squad by a third uncapped player, Alexander Masibaka of Montpellier, who has been in squads before and played in the non-cap game against the Maori All Blacks on the summer tour.

The 45-man squad named by head coach Gregor Townsend will be skippered by Sione Tuipulotu who returns to the role of captain having last led the squad in last year’s autumn series. The Glasgow Warriors centre missed the Six Nations through injury but returned to fitness and helped the British and Irish Lions win the Test series against Australia in the summer.

Rory Darge, who co-captained Scotland in the Six Nations with Finn Russell, is included despite a knee injury. His Glasgow team-mates Zander Fagerson and Jack Dempsey are also in the squad as they recover from knee and groin injuries, respectively.

One of the most eye-catching names included is that of Magnus Bradbury who returns to the squad after an absence of over three years. The back-row forward has been in excellent form for Edinburgh. Also returning to the squad is his Edinburgh team-mate Dylan Richardson, who can play hooker or flanker.

Notable absentees include hooker Dave Cherry, now playing in the French second tier for Vannes, Glasgow Warriors’ injured centre Huw Jones and Cameron Redpath, the Bath centre.

Scotland play USA on Saturday November 1 (5.40pm), New Zealand on Saturday November 8 (3.10pm), Argentina on Sunday November 16 (3.10pm) and Tonga on Sunday November 23 (1.40pm). All matches will be at Murrayfield.

Full Scotland squad

Forwards: Ewan Ashman, Josh Bayliss, Magnus Bradbury, Gregor Brown, Scott Cummings, Rory Darge, Jack Dempsey, Matt Fagerson, Zander Fagerson, Grant Gilchrist, Patrick Harrison, Nathan MacBeth, Alexander Masibaka, Liam McConnell, Elliot Millar Mills, Harri Morris, Andy Onyeama-Christie, D’Arcy Rae, Dylan Richardson, Jamie Ritchie, Alex Samuel, Pierre Schoeman, Rory Sutherland, Marshall Sykes, George Turner, Murphy Walker, Max Williamson.

Backs: Fergus Burke, Jame Dobie, Darcy Graham, Adam Hastings, Rory Hutchinson, George Horne, Tom Jordan, Blair Kinghorn, Stafford McDowall, Kyle Rowe, Arron Reed, Finn Russell, Ollie Smith, Kyle Steyn, Ross Thompson, Sione Tuipulotu, Duhan van der Merwe, Ben White.