Ross Thompson says working alongside Finn Russell with Scotland has been a great experience but is focused on putting his own marker down when Glasgow welcome Dragons to Scotstoun on Saturday.
Fly-half Thompson was a late addition to the Scotland training squad for the Six Nations, joining the group when Adam Hastings was hit by his latest knee injury.
READ MORE: Scotland hit with double injury blow ahead of Six Nations
Thompson, who made his Scotland debut against Tonga in 2021 and has three, says he’s enjoyed being back with the national team after missing most of last season injured.
“It’s been nice to be back in there, especially with the time off with Glasgow. I like to stay involved and keep training so it’s been good to be back in that environment and try to push for some game time there.”
Asked what it’s been like working alongside Russell and Edinburgh’s Ben Healy, the 24-year-old said: "It’s been good. I’ve been working on the opposite team for the most part but they’re both good players and Finn has shown his class in the last two weekends. It’s always good to see how they’re training.”
While he strives for more game time at club level, Thompson said being called into the national set-up was a nice boost.
He said: “It was a difficult season last year with injuries and this season I’ve maybe not had as much game time as I would have liked, but this is where you want to be as a rugby player so it’s good to be back with the coaches.”
He’s hoping to put on a good performance for Glasgow this weekend.
He said: “It’s good to be back here and playing at Scotstoun. It’s Club of Origin day and the women’s game is on before us so it’s a big weekend for the club. It’s a crucial point of the season for us.
“You can really build some momentum during these games in the Six Nations. A win against Dragons would be huge for us.
“Any opportunity I can get I’ll always look to prove what I can do. Just put my best foot forward and try to take every opportunity. I want to play as much as possible.”
With so many players retained by Scotland, Glasgow head coach Franco Smith will have to delve into the depths of his squad in some positions.
That does not worry Thompson, who praised the club’s strength in depth.
He added: “We’ve got a great squad and lots of really good young players.
“They’re always sticking their hands up, even when all the Scotland boys are here. It will be good to see how they go, although it’s also good to see some of the experienced guys back from Scotland like Stafford and Kyle Steyn.”
The fly-half says Glasgow’s sights are set on making it deep into the URC and progressing in Europe, where they play Harlequins in the Champions Cup last 16 on April 5.
He knows a win over Dragons and at Benetton on March 1 would put the club in a strong position.
“We want to go as far as we can in both competitions,” Thompson said.
“It will be tough but we’ve got the squad to do it. We’ll be pushing for that. These two games will be massive for building momentum before all the Scotland players come back in. We want to push back into the top two in the URC if we can.”
Thompson knows good performances in those games would do his chances of adding to his international honours no harm.
He added: “I’ll keep pushing as much as I can to try to get that. That’s where you want to be so I’ll try my best.
“I want to get better as a player and the way to do that is through game time. The more games you play, the more momentum you get, and then you can really stick your hand up for Scotland honours.”
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