Georgia to play World Rugby Champions South Africa, host Scotland in summer tests
The Lelos will take on Tier 1 opposition in three summer tests for the first time. Image via Georgia Rugby Union.
Tweet 
Share
Georgia's national rugby team will play three matches against two of the major sides of the sport in the space of two weeks this summer, with the Lelos set to travel to South Africa for two test games against the current World Champions before hosting Scotland in Tbilisi.
The three-game series will mark the first time the Georgian team have faced Tier 1 opposition in three summer matches, providing a rare opportunity for head coach Levan Maisashvili's squad to have practice of playing opposition from the leading pack of national teams from around the world.
The Lelos will be in South Africa to measure their skills against the 2019 Rugby World Cup winners in two games on July 3 and 10, competing with the Springboks for the first time outside the tournament.
#Excited for July Schedule, which promises a veery hot summer for #GeorgianRugby ????#TheLelos to play 2 tests against World ????’s @Springboks in RSA & host @Scotlandteam in #Georgia
— Georgian Rugby (@GeorgianRugby) May 10, 2021
???????? vs ???????? | 3/7 | ???????? vs ???????? | 10/7 | ???????? vs ???????????????????????????? | 17/7
Read more here➡️ https://t.co/R3Voi2rwXO pic.twitter.com/SpwtYh9CfP
Postponed from its initial date last year due to Covid-19 restrictions, the international test game will now go ahead and mark the first time the two teams have met after the 2003 World Cup, Georgia's debut on the stage. For the South Africans, the two fixtures will be their first games after the 2019 competition.
Lasha Khurtsidze, Georgia Rugby Union Vice President for High Performance and Development, said the arrangement of the two test games was an outcome of close friendship between the two unions, and called South Africa an "important contributor to development of Georgian rugby".
Playing against [the Springboks] is a great honor for us! We have only played South Africa once, on our first Rugby World Cup appearance back in 2003, when we scored the first try at the global rugby forum. A lot of time has passed since then.
- Lasha Khurtsidze, Vice President for High Performance and Development of Georgia Rugby Union
Maisashvili's team will be back in Tbilisi to host Scotland only seven days later, marking the final fixture of the summer test series. The Georgian side last faced their Scottish counterparts ahead of the 2019 World Cup.
The scheduled match against Scotland has been called a "huge event" by Nika Alavidze, Vice President of the Georgia Rugby Union, while Maisashvili said he was hopeful to see his squad "apply the lessons" from previous games against major opposition in the upcoming summer tests.