Mariano would welcome Scotland call-up

Castleford back rower Frankie Mariano admits that the prospect of being called up by Scotland is something that he would welcome.

The Hull-born player has a father from Cape Verde, but he also has a Scottish grandmother on the maternal side of the family.

With Scotland now European Champions, and confirmed as participants in the 2016 Four Nations and the 2017 World Cup, the prospect of pulling on the dark blue jersey now looks more appealing than ever.

“It had never come to mind until I got asked about it last year,” Mariano told Love Rugby League.

“It’d be obviously great to represent Scotland, it’s a step up to play for a country.

“I wouldn’t say I’ve got my eye on it, but if something comes up then of course I would play.”

Mariano is enthusiastic about working with Scotland coach Steve McCormack, but it is the thought of working with new players from different clubs which really excites him when it comes to playing international football.

“It’s not just the coaching staff, though,” he added.

“You get to work with different players from different clubs, and obviously you can learn from that.

“It would be amazing to represent Scotland, it’s certainly something to think about.”

Mariano’s personal aims for the new season remain somewhat more practical, though, as he looks to recover from injury and nail down a first-team place.

“My number one priority at the moment is to get my injury right,” he said.

“I had to have a wrist reconstruction. It was quite a big one, the biggest one I’ve had so far.

“I’ve got around two months left to go with that.

“Apart from that, I just need to continue my performance from last year, really.

“My first goal, though, is to get in the squad! We’ve signed some decent players in my position.

“So someone’s going to start the season in the shirt that I was playing in last year, so it’ll be my job to get that back.”