SCOTLAND LOOKING FOR THE PERFECT START:
Toony tells Scots to win every moment... as Irish rely on sumo wrestlers
GREGOR TOWNSEND admits Scotland must win every big moment in their World Cup opener – as Ireland turned to sumo wrestlers to stifle them.
Toony’s troops are outsiders to beat the world No.1 side when their Pool A campaign gets underway in Yokohama tomorrow.
The Dark Blues boss is sure his experienced heads are capable of knocking down Joe Schmidt’s side.
That’s despite Irish ace Cian Healy gearing up to neuter Scotland’s scrum – and powerhouse WP Nel’s “bombs” – by taking tips from Tokyo sumo wrestlers.
And if they are to avoid being trampled then Townsend reckons his men will have to come out on top in every collision and make the most of every opening.
He said: “We have to take our opportunities and we have to limit the opportunities Ireland get.
“Ireland have shown in recent years they do take their chances and punish teams. They kick it into the opposition 22 and they come away with points.
“We have to win every big moment in the game. Whether that’s a ruck, a tackle or the execution of a pass, we have to be there.
“I believe in the team and with the individuals we have in our squad I believe we will create chances. It’s about taking them.”
No Scotland team has walked out at a World Cup boasting more caps than the 630 collectively held by the 15 players set to be led by skipper Stuart McInally.
Townsend had to leave Blair Kinghorn out of his matchday squad after a delayed recurrence of his concussion symptoms following a head knock against Georgia a fortnight ago.
But the Murrayfield coach said: “We have something like a combined total of 630 caps so that’s hugely important.
“This is the first time this squad has nearly all been fit and available. We’re missing probably just two or three players from every available Scotland player, so to get a squad that has this kind of experience for this kind of game is a real bonus.”
While the Scots are almost at full strength, Ireland will be without Rob Kearney, Keith Earls and Robbie Henshaw. Jordan Larmour was the surprise pick to start at 15 ahead of Andrew Conway but Townsend is not convinced his selection means there will be an obvious weak spot in Schmidt’s back three.
Ireland’s bid to make sure they are not left sprawling extended to visiting Tokyo’s Isegahama stable this week, having been given rare access during sumo competition as a mark of respect.
Champion ozeki rank wrestler Terunofuji Haruo took time to talk to members of the squad and Healy said: “It was class, I did that as well on the tour here in 2017.
“And when it became an option this time I was urging the lads to do it because I was saying how good it was.
“Culturally it was one of the best things I did last time around, gaining an understanding of it that they are not just big lumps.
“The amount of training they put in, their flexibility, strength, power, everything.
“It was a really good experience to get that and chat to the lads afterwards.
“They were really open and good with us – they just wouldn’t let us stand down on the ring. They did wish us luck actually. The main man, he followed a few of us on Instagram and he was giving us a few direct messages and chatting to us. He was saying good luck, so there’s been a bit of chat and a bit of craic.”
We have to win every big moment in the game.. we have to be there GREGOR TOWNSEND CALLS FOR SCOTS TO BE CLINICAL