Plymouth Albion hope for boost from England Under-20s game

Plymouth Albion chairman Graham Stirling says hosting Friday's England Under-20s Six Nations clash with Scotland will boost the club.

Albion , but survived after securing their Championship status last season.

A large crowd is expected at the Brickfields for the clash, which could see five South West-based players take to the field in front of a home crowd.

"It's a real boost," Stirling told BBC South West Sport.

"This season with the play-offs being eliminated from the Championship effectively meant we lost three home games.

"So to bring this game in is very timely and a super game and we hope for a big crowd."

Five players from the Exeter Chiefs, Joel Conlan, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Henry Slade, Jack Arnott and Sam Hill, are in the England Under-20s squad.

Slade, Cowan-Dickie and Arnott are currently plying their trade with Albion on dual-registration deals while Hill is on a similar contract at the Cornish Pirates.

"It reminds you, when you're getting on with your day-to-day rugby, that when something like this happens, how special some of these players are, representing their country at Under-20 level," added Stirling.

"It's fabulous for them and it's fabulous for the club, and it shows the relationship in rugby in the South West.

"To bring a game of that magnitude into Plymouth and to the South West is a fantastic privilege and we're all really looking forward to it.

"Getting a game like this is fabulous for the rugby community in the South West, and the momentum is growing."