While the debate goes on about who kicks more, and England make war cries as Scotland try to figure out how to break five yards to score, it’s all building up to be a wet, windy, bogged-down affair at Murrayfield tomorrow. And you won’t be called out if you lay the blame on that bitch Ciara.
– England win Calcutta Cup; match report
– Scotland lose to Ireland 19-12; match report
– Tournament preview; Scotland’s Six Nations
Stupid comments, even stupider errors and a lack of finishing make it difficult to see who’s going to take home the old trophy
Comments of ‘we hate them and they hate us’ by the England camp as well as using words like ‘war’ and ‘brutality’ to describe the upcoming encounter between Scotland and England are blowing up a giant balloon that will burst five minutes into kick-off of tomorrow’s Calcutta Cup as the two teams reveal themselves not to be bloodthirsty warriors but more like stuttering oafs that are finding it hard to find their modus operandi.
You’d think Jones might have considered putting a different spin on the match when, on his last visit to Scotland, the England coach found himself pinned in a taxi by gloating Scottish rugby fans who called him a bald c*** after his sides grand slam ending defeat in 2018.
Yet still England antagonise, this time through flanker Lewis Ludlam who says the red rose is coming and it’s going to be war.
Jones demanded brutality of his team in France and they were brutal – in the way they conceded a three try lead and allowed France to demolish them in the first half.
Townsend remains contrite and tries to mollify the situation by complementing Jones on his assessment of Scotland – which included labelling the Scots the team that likes to kick the most in world rugby (even though in 2019 most kicks per game were calculated as being done by England).
Townsend maybe passed beyond the point of shrewd and ventured into rolling over in his pre-match press conferences when he described one half-hour of rugby by Jones’ England the best he’s seen of an opposing team since coaching Scotland.
In the wake of Ludlem’s call for England to be brutal and not give the Scots “an inch to breath”, Townsend points out one can get “too pumped up” for the occasion.
In an attempt to avoid this Townsend is trying to steer his team down a more peaceful route of concentrating on staying within the pre-match plan and focusing not on bludgeoning to a pulp your opposite number, but transferring what was done on the training pitch into game day.
England’s right to be nervous and Scotland’s right to be confident
England arrogant? Never!
The world cup finalists have the right to be confident going into Saturday. They’ve won eight of the last ten, including an eight game winning streak between 2011 and 2017, and have a 75-43 lead over their famous rivals since the old cup was first competed for in 1879
But all is not totally well in the England camp with the rather drastic decision to drop highest capped player Ben Youngs after the loss to France – Jones is attempting to blame that bitch Ciara for the decision.
And star fly-half Owen Farrell seems to have found himself in a rhythmic rut after his display in Paris last Saturday where he kept passing the ball when he should have kicked it and kicking it when he should have passed.
Scotland on the other hand have made strides closer to the winning line. Against Japan defensive lapses let the opposition team out-score them and while still conceding in Dublin the points made against were nine less than in Yokohama (kudos new defence coach Steve Tandy).
Meet in the middle
There is a sense that Scotland are moving forward and England have taken a step or two back.
Even though Townsend is being incredibly contrite in the run-up to the match the showing in Ireland was one of dominance more than supplication and with Magnus Bradbury reintroduced after a sudden withdrawal from the Ireland game due to a thigh injury, the Scottish pack will be more powerful for their encounter with the auld enemy.
Scotland vs England
Sat 08 Feb, Murrayfield, 16:45 KO
Lineups:
Scotland: (Backs); Hogg (capt), Maitland, Jones, Johnson, Kinghorn, Hastings, Price, (Forwards); Sutherland, Brown, Fagerson, Cummings, Gray, Ritchie, Watson, Bradbury.
Replacements: McInally, Dell, Berghan, Toolis, Haining, Horne, Hutchinson, Harris.
England: (Backs); Furbank, May, Joseph, Farrell, Daly; Ford, Heinz, (Forwards); M Vunipola, George, Sinckler, Kruis, Itoje, Ludlam, Underhill, Curry
Replacements: Dunn, Genge, Stuart, Launchbury, Lawes, Earl, Youngs, Devoto
Harry Jamshid Reporter Sports Pages 