Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend has openly accepted that facing criticism is an inherent aspect of professional rugby, as he prepares his team for a crucial Calcutta Cup showdown against England this weekend. Townsend is under mounting pressure following Scotland's disappointing opening-round defeat to Italy in the Six Nations, which compounded earlier losses to New Zealand and Argentina in the autumn internationals.
Pressure Mounts After Defeat to Italy
Despite signing a contract extension just last September, Townsend's position has come under intense scrutiny. Former Scotland captain John Barclay recently suggested that Townsend may need to depart if the team fails to achieve a top-three finish in the tournament. The coach, however, remains focused on the task at hand, emphasizing the importance of blocking out external noise.
"That's an existential question," Townsend remarked when asked about the impact of outside criticism on his squad. "It's part of the game. We're all sports fans. We understand what happens when you lose, when people open up to criticise you or the team."
Focus on Improvement Over Distractions
Townsend explained that the immediate aftermath of a defeat is dominated by introspection rather than external opinions. "When we're sitting in the changing room after a game, after the defeat, it's not something that you would ever think that's going to be in the front of your mind. It's the, 'how could we have performed better?' That feeling of disappointment at the end. That's overall," he said.
He acknowledged that distractions can emerge later, with players and staff potentially checking media coverage. "Now as you get to day one or day two, I'm sure there'll be a few players, staff that will be going onto BBC Sport, the Telegraph website, social media, and starting to go, 'oh, there's more than just a defeat. There's things that are out there'. That's the thing that can distract from what is important: the feeling that we had losing, why we lost, how we can get better, and we throw everything into that at training."
Historical Context and Team Morale
Scotland has enjoyed considerable success against England at Murrayfield under Townsend's leadership, winning three of the last four Calcutta Cup meetings at home. However, last year's narrow defeat to England ended a run of four consecutive victories, including their first win at Twickenham since 1983.
Townsend hopes his team can draw motivation from past successes. "I would hope they don't fade into irrelevance, because our players have evidence that they've won in this fixture. If it's the extra bit of belief, motivation, evidence, that we've been in this position before and we've won, then that can only help," he stated.
He added, "We didn't win last year, so that was a tough one, because we felt we played one of our best ever games against England last year. So it doesn't always work that that evidence leads to a victory. But we're going to lean into anything that can help us get a win this weekend."
Selection Decisions and Player Form
In team selection, Townsend has opted not to recall winger Duhan van der Merwe to the starting lineup, despite van der Merwe's impressive record against England. Instead, the coach is backing other players based on current form.
"We've got to pick who we believe will give us the best chance of winning," Townsend explained. "Sometimes that decision is a very tough one. When you think of Duhan and how well he's played for the team, we made that decision a week ago and we backed Jamie Dobie. I thought Jamie played really well. He obviously picked up that injury. He's been outstanding at training. So we're going with someone who we believe in the form he is right now."
Townsend did note van der Merwe's potential, saying, "But we know if Duhan had the opportunity, he probably would play his best rugby. He's getting back to his best rugby. I thought his last two games for Edinburgh were excellent. And he's in the mix."
The Scotland squad has demonstrated resilience in training this week, according to Townsend. "Our players have done that this week. They're a team that is together. They're a team that know that wasn't good enough at the weekend, but they put huge effort into that game in a very tough situation, very tough circumstances against a really good side. It wasn't enough to win, but I know they'll do everything they can to win this week again. That's all you can ask from a team."
