Blade Thomson

Blade Neville Thomson (born 4 December 1990) is a former professional rugby union player who played as a lock or loose forward. Born in Auckland, New Zealand, he represented Scotland in international rugby, being eligible for the national team through his paternal grandfather, Robert, who was from Wishaw. He played for Taranaki in the ITM Cup and for the Super Rugby franchise the , and spent the last five years of his career playing in Wales for the Scarlets.

Professional career

Thomson was a member of the Hurricanes Wider Training Group in 2012, and he joined the squad for the 2013 Super Rugby season. Thomson missed the 2017 Super Rugby season due to shoulder reconstruction surgery.

Thomson joined Pro14 team the Scarlets at the beginning of the 2018–19 season.

On 16 February 2023, Thomson announced his retirement due to a head injury.

International career

Thomson was a member of the New Zealand Under 20 team that won the 2010 IRB Junior World Championship in Argentina, where the 197 cm forward played alongside the likes of Crusaders Tyler Bleyendaal and Tom Marshall and All Black winger Julian Savea.

In October 2018, Thomson was called up to Scotland for the Autumn Internationals. He made his Scotland debut on 24 August 2019 in a Rugby World Cup warm-up match against France at Murrayfield Stadium.

Thompson was part of the Scotland squad for the 2019 Rugby World Cup. He played in the 3 matches, as a substitute in the opening game against Ireland before starting against both Samoa and Japan.

Personal life Thomson is a New Zealander of Māori descent (Ngāpuhi descent).