COACHES CATCH UP WITH FINN

SCOTLAND’S coaching team have finally spoken to Finn Russell — after cancelling a planned discussion as it didn’t fit into their schedule. Their decision not to make it a priority on Monday was a surprise considering bridges are still being built with the fly-half, who stormed out of the Six Nations camp after a row with Gregor Townsend. However, scrum coach Pieter de Villiers revealed that they have now had a conference call with the Racing 92 star to gain the inside track on a Grand Slam-chasing France side ahead of Sunday’s Six Nations showdown at Murrayfield. ‘We spoke to Finn on Tuesday because he plays in France so we can get a bit of info from him to help our prep as best as possible,’ said De Villiers. ‘Finn is at Racing 92 working with some of the players who play for France and some of their coaches, so he is obviously invaluable for us in terms of information. ‘We spoke to him about bits and bobs of strategy and tactics in French rugby that we will hopefully use. That is the first time I’ve spoken to him ever and we spoke rugby, about technique and strategy.’ De Villiers is looking forward to catching up with former team-mate Fabien Galthie, now head coach of Les Bleus. ‘I played with Fabien Galthie and Raphael Ibanez (French team manager) in the early 2000s in a French team that played similar rugby to what they’re playing now,’ he said. ‘Fabien is an all-round very good coach and he’s particularly good at attack but, after the World Cup, there’s been a greater stress on defence and physicality in the French team. ‘They’ve certainly changed their approach to become a bit less predictable and give away less turnovers, so we’ll have to front up to that. ‘But Scotland have also proved to be very physical and to have a good set-piece, so it will be a very good battle.’