It\u2019d be a big shock if Scottish Rugby were to pull the trigger mid-tournament, although lose in Wales<\/a> next weekend and all bets will be off, but you do get the sense that his nine-year reign will come to an end at the conclusion of the Six Nations<\/a> if they lose to England.<\/p>\n That might seem extreme or knee-jerk to some but I can\u2019t see them beating both France<\/a> at home and Ireland<\/a> away so a top half finish will look almost impossible if they lose their opening two games and that should have been the bare minimum.<\/p>\n There are those who will say that fourth place is par, given they\u2019ve only finished higher than that twice in the last dozen years, and Townsend has definitely progressed the team in attack during his tenure but this is his 100th Test in charge and it\u2019s reasonable to expect more.<\/p>\n Fittingly, as he raises his bat for a century of Tests as head coach, he is under a ton of pressure and maybe he and his side produce their best results when their backs are against the wall. They certainly save their best for the Auld Enemy, that\u2019s for sure.<\/p>\n Scotland have won four of the last five meetings between the teams but they\u2019re bigger underdogs than they have been in most of those recent contests, given the respective form of the two sides, even with home advantage and some of Townsend\u2019s selections are simply baffling.<\/p>\n How Blair Kinghorn<\/a> can\u2019t get in this team, not even in the match day 23, with all of his versatility as well as his undoubted quality when he starts week in, week out for probably the best club team in the world in Toulouse<\/a> is beyond me.<\/p>\n Duhan van der Merwe is a more understandable omission given his lack of form this season but he has been Player of the Match in each of the last three Calcutta Cup clashes and poses a different threat to anyone else the Scots have.<\/p>\n It\u2019s no disrespect to Tom Jordan<\/a> or Jamie Dobie<\/a> but there\u2019s no doubt that Byron McGuigan<\/a>, who has done a terrific job with England\u2019s defence since coming in, Richard Wigglesworth<\/a> and their players would have been more concerned about the x-factor that Kinghorn and van der Merwe possess.<\/p>\n Darcy Graham is at least waiting in the wings among the replacements but he completes the trio of British & Irish Lions back three players left out of the starting XV and now another Lion in Pierre Schoeman<\/a> has been relegated to the bench.<\/p>\n It\u2019s fair to say he didn\u2019t have his best game last week and perhaps Townsend is hoping for more of an impact coming off the bench but they\u2019re losing a lot of experience and dynamism with him not starting.<\/p>\n Leaving out Schoeman and Grant Gilchrist<\/a> means there are now no Edinburgh<\/a> players at all in the starting XV and they have been struggling in the URC but Jamie Ritchie<\/a> is back in despite Perpignan\u2019s Top 14<\/a> struggles, although they have won a few games of late.<\/p>\n George Turner, who has started just one PREM game all season for out-of-form Harlequins, starts at hooker and his back-up is Dave Cherry<\/a>, who is 35-years-old and plying his trade for Vannes<\/a> in PRO D2.<\/p>\n With just two professional teams and a much smaller player pool, Scotland might not be blessed with the same strength in depth as England<\/a> but Gregor Hiddleston<\/a> is young, hungry, has scored seven tries in his last 10 games for high-flying Glasgow<\/a> and still can\u2019t get a game.<\/p>\n Whereas Townsend\u2019s selection policy is confusing, Steve Borthwick\u2019s could not be more straightforward and that comes with the territory when you\u2019re on a run of 12 consecutive victories.<\/p>\n Fin Smith deserves a spot in the match day 23 but his inclusion ahead of Marcus Smith<\/a> might cause a headache if there\u2019s an early injury or two in the centres or back three given he isn\u2019t quite as versatile as the Quins man.<\/p>\n Northampton\u2019s general is more of a traditional fly-half, although he\u2019d be able to do a job at inside centre, so injuries might mean we see Ben Earl<\/a> deployed at centre again.<\/p>\n Much has been made of the fact we saw him there last week but it\u2019s all well and good for a brief spell against a poor Wales side, you wouldn\u2019t want to have to station him there for an extended period with Finn Russell<\/a> pulling the strings in front of him.<\/p>\n That aside, the impact of the bench has become a huge feature for England over the past 12 months and it was probably the most underwhelming aspect of what was a decent day at the office at Allianz Stadium last weekend.<\/p>\n Borthwick will be asking for more from the likes of Tom Curry<\/a>, Henry Pollock and now Alex Coles<\/a> and Jamie George<\/a> and there\u2019s no secret to how the men in white will approach the game, even if they are full of confidence and have potent threats out wide.<\/p>\n It\u2019ll be all about physicality first and getting the upper hand up front in a way that other teams have managed to more often than they have against the Scots in recent years.<\/p>\n The temptation can be there to throw the ball around when you\u2019re heavy favourites as they were last week but they managed the game well and it\u2019ll be more of the same in Edinburgh in terms of utilising the kicking game, forcing mistakes with line speed and targeting the breakdown.<\/p>\n They\u2019ll be pragmatic to begin with and try to build a lead, forcing Russell to feel like he has to pull rabbits out of hats as he has done in this fixture many times before, but they know now they have the tools to change it up as the game wears on.<\/p>\n People are understandably talking about England\u2019s title credentials, even prematurely salivating at the prospect of a potential Grand Slam decider in Paris on Super Saturday, but Borthwick won\u2019t have looked past this one and it is an acid test for his men.<\/p>\n![\"Gregor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Scotland_GregorTownsend_preSA_Nov24_resized_GettyImages-2184009640-1024x683.jpg.webp.webp\")
Gregor Townsend<\/a> is in his ninth Six Nations campaign as head coach of Scotland (Photo by David Rogers\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"British](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/GettyImages-2222243542-1024x577.jpg.webp.webp\")
Blair Kinghorn and Duhan Van Der Merwe on British and Irish Lions<\/a> duty (Photo by DAVID GRAY \/ AFP)<\/p>\n![\"Steve](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/GettyImages-2258253602-1024x576.jpg.webp.webp\")
Steve Borthwick<\/a>, Head Coach of England, looks on during the England training camp at Hotel Camiral de Caldes de Malavella on January 28, 2026 in Girona, Spain. (Photo by Steve Bardens \u2013 RFU\/The RFU Collection via Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"England](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/GettyImages-2246842922.jpg.webp.webp\")
Henry Pollock<\/a> celebrates at the final whistle during the Quilter Nations Series 2025 rugby international match between England and New Zealand<\/a> at Allianz Stadium on November 15, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Warren Little\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n