MURRAY McCallum has thanked his parents for going to the "ends of the earth" to help him achieve his rugby dream.

The 22-year-old from Dunfermline made his senior bow for Scotland during their Six Nations opener against Wales in February.

With his family watching on inside a packed Principality Stadium, the product of Dunfermline Rugby Club emerged from the bench on 64 minutes to make his debut under the lights in Cardiff, as Scotland fell to defeat.

"The atmosphere was electric and it was just insane," he told Press Sport this week.

"I had plenty of time to take it all in during the build-up, so by the time I got on it was just another game of rugby for me. I was going on to do my job for the team."

He admits the call-up for Gregor Townsend's 23-man-squad for the clash was "earlier than expected", but he embraced every moment.

It was a family affair for the Edinburgh Rugby prop who had his parents, brother, godmother, girlfriend and her mother in attendance.

"There was a couple of tears, but they absolutely loved it and were all over the moon," he continued.

"It was great to see my friends and family there supporting me.

"I'm glad I could do it for them as they've been so strong and supportive and really spurred me on behind the scenes.

"My parents have gone to the ends of the earth to get me to training sessions in the past and made sure everything has been right for me and my rugby.

"They backed me when I dropped out of university to purse an academy place, which can't have been easy for them."

Murray is staying grounded in the wake of his Scotland debut and his focus remains on performing strongly for his club with key fixtures approaching and international coaches monitoring his progress.

Press Sport reported last month that his Edinburgh teammate Fraser McKenzie, formerly of Dunfermline, claimed the "world is Murray's oyster", and was eager to see him progress.

Murray laughed and admitted: "Well, the world is what I make of it.

"I've worked hard for these opportunities and it's up to me to apply myself further and hopefully take it as far as I want it to go.

"When I was younger, it was a little bit tedious with people dropping out of your team and deciding it wasn't for them, but I've always knew that this was the game for me. I've always loved rugby.

"It wasn't too frustrating not playing more than once (during the Six Nations) as I knew there were boys in the squad who were injured or serving bans, and maybe I got called up earlier than I had expected, but I was just pleased to be included and move past that mental barrier as it were.

"You never want to get too far ahead of yourself as your next game could be your last depending on how you play and if there's younger lads pushing to take your place.

"You've got to stay grounded and keep working hard.

"You can't drop off as there's always other boys who are hungry to get there. The second you drop off they want to catch you and overtake you."