'I didn't have any inclination': Demi Swann's journey to Test rugby with Scotland

Demi Swann was a promising wrestler when she was growing up in Canada. So, she is used to fighting hard for everything that comes her way.

And those battling qualities have now helped earn the 30-year-old Exeter Chiefs loosehead prop her first two Test rugby caps for Scotland. She wondered at one point if they would ever come.

With a mother from Troon, Swann was always aware of her Scottish qualifications. And after she moved over to the UK to play in Premiership Women’s Rugby a few years ago with Worcester Warriors, the front-rower earned a call up to Scotland’s WXV 2 squad that won that event in South Africa in late 2023.

A first cap never materialised on that trip and then Canada showed some interest. But by the time this year’s Guinness Women’s Six Nations was about to come around she was still uncapped at international level for any team.

When fellow loosehead Anne Young picked up an injury, Scotland head coach Sione Fukofuka sent out an SOS to Swann just before the Championship got underway and she has since gained her first two caps off the bench versus Wales and England for the land of her mother’s birth as back up to Leah Bartlett.

Cap number three is set to come on Saturday – this time as a starter – in the Round 3 clash away to Italy at the Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi in Parma and Swann said: “I received a call from Sione in the lead up to the tournament and I didn’t have any inclination at all that a Scotland call up might be coming.

“I was a bit taken aback, but I was delighted and the girls have been so welcoming and really supportive and helped me catch up and get up to speed really quickly once I got into camp. I just kind of got thrown right into it, but it’s been great so far.

“My debut against Wales was absolutely amazing, I feel like I’ve been replaying that moment at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff when I came onto the pitch over and over again in my mind.

“There was about 10,000 people there, but it felt a lot more because the roof was closed and the atmosphere was really, really cool.

“And then to play at Murrayfield last weekend against England in front of a record crowd of over 30,00 was just crazy. Something really special.

“My dad is originally from the Philippines and my mum’s originally from Scotland. They both immigrated to Canada and then I was born in Canada, but my mum now actually lives back in Troon in Ayrshire.

“My mum was at Murrayfield last weekend and my dad actually made the trip over from Canada as well for that game so that was super special. They even had these little custom-made t-shirts with my name on them so they were feeling very, very proud. I feel so honoured to represent Scotland.

“The last time I was in the wider Scotland squad was in late 2023, it was the first WXV 2 event.

“After that tour I didn’t get selected for the following Six Nations in early 2024 under Bryan [Easson, the then head coach] and then, I think just based on conversations. I really didn’t think I would have another opportunity with Scotland and there was some interest from Canada.

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“As a result, I kind of pursued that path a little bit. I did definitely have mixed emotions about doing that, but, again, the Canadian girls were also so welcoming and I was in a few camps with them.

“It never really worked out with Canada and then when Sione reached out recently I thought ‘yeah, let’s go for it’ and I’m glad I did because I literally couldn’t picture it any other way now that I’m playing for Scotland with this group.”

Swann grew up in a town called Georgetown, Ontario, which is around 45 minutes away by car from Toronto.

After school, she then did an undergraduate degree in neuroscience at Carleton University in Ottawa and then completed a masters degree in teaching at the University of Toronto.

So, where does rugby fit in?

“I actually played one year of high school rugby for fun when I was probably about 17, but I would say officially I started playing rugby properly at about age 21 when I was at uni,” Swann, who is now in her third season with Exeter, explained.

“I wrestled all throughout high school and that was my big thing at that time.

“Then I did it a little bit of wrestling at university. In my first couple of years in Ottawa I wrestled and it wasn’t until our wrestling team kind of folded and our coach left that I properly took up rugby.

“At that time, I thought to myself ‘I’ve done athletics before and I’ve done wrestling so I might as well see if the skills I have learnt from, those sports marry up and can help me with rugby’.

“And I’m so glad I gave it a go and it has been a really exciting ride since then and I’m now just fully focused on the rest of the current Six Nations tournament with Scotland.”