What a difference nine months can make. Finn Russell has gone from not being ranked outside the top three stand-offs available to Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend ahead of last Autumn’s Test Series, to now being handed the captaincy of the national team which will take on France at Murrayfield on Saturday.
The 30-year-old has stepped into the breach for the second of Scotland’s four World Cup warm-up matches after regular skipper Jamie Ritchie was forced to drop out of the team due to a minor calf injury, which is expected to clear in time for next weekend’s return fixture against France in St Etienne.
Russell and Townsend, of course, have a turbulent history, with an infamous spat ahead of the 2020 Six Nations depriving the side of its talismanic playmaker.
More recently, he was excluded from the starting XV to face Ireland in the final match of the 2022 Six Nations after being one of six players implicated in an unsanctioned visit to an Edinburgh bar following the previous week’s win over Italy.
The general assumption has been that the pair managed to strike an uneasy but mutually beneficial truce since Russell's recall for the second half of last year's Autumn Test Series – with each recognising that their own ambitions are heavily reliant on the other – and this is the first solid indication that they may have truly established a better understanding of each other.
“Finn was vice-captain when we were putting this team together,” explained the coach after announcing a starting XV for Saturday which features 13 changes to the side he sent out last weekend against Italy. “Jamie only called off on Monday and I chatted to Finn to get his thoughts on it. He was keen and sees it as a great opportunity.
“Whether he was captain or not this weekend, he is one of our leaders and that extra responsibly and challenge will be good for him.
“We know his life has changed [with the birth of his first daughter last November] and since he came back into the squad he has shown on and off the field he wants Scotland to win,” Townsend added.
“We see that through his performances but also see that through what he does at training, connecting with others.
“He has always been someone who would lead our attack. Most people in that position would but the ability he has and knowledge of the attacking game – what works generally and what works for us – has got stronger over the years, and really stronger over the last six to nine months.
“It’s the right time to give him this opportunity, and it will be interesting to see how he goes,” Townsend added. “Being vice-captain and our most important attack leader gives him a real confidence and I’m hoping that being captain gives him confidence too.”
There is always a slight concern that handing the captaincy to a player becomes a distraction or too much of a burden, but Townsend says he is confident that Russell has the personality and mental bandwidth to take the extra responsibility in his stride. “I chatted to him about that and told him that I think he could be a very good captain but also said that he had to let me know if this was the right thing for him,” Townsend explained. “I gave him time to think about and he was keen to take up the opportunity.
“I think he’s thriving in where he is in his life, and where he is in his rugby in terms of his knowledge of the game. I could see him being a coach in a few years’ time because he understands the game so well.
“The game is in an exciting phase, I believe, because attacks are starting to get the upper hand over defences, and if you’ve got someone who naturally understands that and works hard to make sure that he does go where the space is, then if you’re in that role you’re going to enjoy that.
“The relationship with the guys outside is really important too," Townsend added. "A lot of the attacking load is shared outside as well as inside, and having Sione Tuipulotu or other guys in that 12 position able to be a playmaker, having people offering really good running lines, means Finn isn’t the one having to put the miracle pass in.
“One really exciting thing is Finn’s relationship with Blair Kinghorn at 15, because they’ve really mixed up who is at first receiver or second receiver this week – which brings in someone else for the defence to worry about at first receiver, but also means Finn can have an influence further out at times.
“So, all these things mean that we can see the best of Finn, and others can also exploit it if a defence is going straight to him, which is great for our attack.”
