The Scotland head coach, Gregor Townsend, has urged his players to control their emotions on Saturday when they face England in the Six Nations opener.
Announcing a much-changed team for the Twickenham encounter that will mark the start of Steve Borthwick’s tenure as England coach, Townsend said he had learned lessons from taking charge of past Calcutta Cups. The former Scotland and Lions international admitted he failed to keep his emotions in check before the memorable match in 2019, when his side recovered from 31-0 down to draw 38-38.
“I’ve been guilty of that in the past,” he said. “In 2019, I believe I put too much emotion into the fixture, and we weren’t in control in those first 15, 20 minutes. We know it’s a different atmosphere at Twickenham … we’ve got to make sure our minds are clear, our communication is strong, our togetherness is on show.”
Townsend has made seven changes, some enforced, to the team that defeated Argentina at home in November. Kyle Steyn of Glasgow is selected on the wing in the absence of Darcy Graham, while the experienced scrum-half Ali Price is left out of the 23. Ben White of London Irish starts in the No 9 jersey, partnering Finn Russell at fly-half, with Glasgow’s George Horne providing cover on the bench. The Gloucester centre Chris Harris is on the replacements’ bench with Huw Jones at outside-centre alongside Sione Tuipulotu at No 12.
In the forwards, the openside flanker Luke Crosbie starts, with Townsend citing his display in Edinburgh’s Champions Cup win over Saracens last month as evidence of his competitiveness at the breakdown. In the second row, Richie Gray is preferred to his brother, Jonny, who is on the bench.
England: F Steward (Leicester); M Malins (Saracens), J Marchant (Harlequins), O Farrell (Saracens, capt), O Hassell-Collins (London Irish); M Smith (Harlequins), J Van Poortvliet (Leicester); E Genge (Bristol), J George (Saracens), K Sinckler (Bristol), M Itoje (Saracens), O Chessum (Leicester), L Ludlam (Northampton), B Curry (Sale), A Dombrandt (Harlequins).
Replacements: J Walker (Harlequins), M Vunipola (Saracens), D Cole (Leicester), N Isiekwe (Saracens), B Earl (Saracens), B Youngs (Leicester), O Lawrence (Bath), A Watson (Leicester).
Scotland: S Hogg (Exeter); K Steyn (Glasgow), H Jones (Glasgow), Sione Tuipulotu (Glasgow), D van der Merwe (Edinburgh), F Russell (Racing 92) B White (London Irish); P Schoeman (Edinburgh), G Turner (Glasgow), WP Nel (Edinburgh), R Gray (Glasgow), G Gilchrist (Edinburgh), J Ritchie (Edinburgh), L Crosbie (Edinburgh), M Fagerson (Glasgow). Replacements: F Brown (Glasgow), J Bhatti (Glasgow), S Berghan (Glasgow), J Gray (Exeter) J Dempsey (Glasgow), G Horne (Glasgow), B Kinghorn (Edinburgh), C Harris (Gloucester).
Of the prop Zander Fagerson, who has trained fully since last week as he recovers from a hamstring injury, Townsend said: “We feel this game just came a few days too early for him.” The 36-year-old WP Nel comes into the front row to replace Fagerson, with George Turner selected at hooker, and Pierre Schoeman starting at loosehead.
Asked about his decision to leave out Price, Townsend said: “It was very difficult. Ali has been so good for us, it shows the level of competition, not only in that position, but in lots of positions. We have gone for players in really good form. I also believe this will get the best out of Ali, we believe we’ll see a reaction and will get Ali back to his best for the rest of the campaign.”
The last time Scotland visited Twickenham, in 2021, they achieved a sensational 11-6 victory with a dynamic display and they also overcame England 20-17 at Murrayfield last season.
“[Victory in] 2021 meant so much,” Townsend said. “We got sent videos of people at home, that had been confined to their houses for a while during lockdown, and that gave them a massive lift. We’re here to win, we’re here to inspire our nation and make them proud.”
