Scotland will return home for the first time since 2019 for a World Cup warm-up match against England Knights.
The sides will play at Myreside, Edinburgh on Saturday 8 October, with a 1.30pm kick-off.
It will be the sole warm-up fixture for Nathan Graham’s Bravehearts, who take on Italy, Fiji and Australia in their World Cup group.
The match will be one of two outings this autumn for Paul Anderson’s England Knights squad, along with a game against a France ‘B’ side in Bordeaux the previous Saturday (October 1), and their first clash with Scotland in ten years.
“Having a ‘pre-World Cup camp’ in Edinburgh before heading down to Newcastle gives our squad an extra four days to get together,” said Graham.
“There will be a few new faces in the mix so it will give them a chance to integrate and make our group as tight knit as ever.
“Launching our World Cup campaign in Scotland will culminate in a warm-up game against England Knights.
“Without being able to have a meaningful mid-season international, I felt that we needed a tough game to kick us off and Paul Anderson’s team will certainly provide that.”