Lions boss may call on Townsend
LIONS head coach Warren Gatland admits he is considering appointing Gregor Townsend to his backroom staff for next summer’s tour to New Zealand. But he revealed Vern Cotter effectively ruled himself out of his plans when it became clear the Scotland head coach would be joining Montpellier next season. Townsend’s inclusion would not be without controversy as the start of the tour in June coincides with the date he
replaces Cotter as Scotland boss. Sportsmail understands the SRU would allow the Glasgow Warriors head coach to join the Lions as they believe the experience would help him in his new role. Assistant Matt Taylor would then likely deputise on the tour to Australia, which marks the start of Townsend’s Scots tenure. Gatland, speaking at the launch of the new Lions strip last night, said: ‘Gregor’s done really well over the past few seasons. He’s already had time with Scotland and has gone back to Glasgow Warriors and implemented a lot of the things he learned from being involved in international rugby. ‘I thought about adding another coach to the set-up for the tour to take a bit of pressure off the others. It’s an incredibly tough gig mentally.’ Asked if Cotter was also in the frame, Gatland said: ‘Probably not, because he’s not contributing to Lions rugby after moving to Montpellier and that counts against him a little bit. ‘If he’d stayed in Scotland, or at one of the home nations, his experience could have been valuable but he’s decided to go to France.’ Gatland will not attend any of Scotland’s autumn Tests against Australia, Argentina and Georgia but may visit their training camp. He reckons some Scots are already putting their hands up for Lions selection, with Stuart Hogg top of the list. ‘In the past 12 months, some of Hogg’s performances have shown he’s matured,’ said Gatland, who took him on the 2013 Lions tour to Australia. ‘He’s a quality player and one who could potentially be in the frame. ‘For a Scottish player, a good Six Nations is definitely going to have an impact, not just to get selected but to potentially start.’
Untouchable until it’s earnt. Canterbury’s new British & Irish Lions Jersey is available to buy at www.canterbury.com