Townsend takes bold approach for Pumas
Russell and Hastings could be the dream team for Scotland
SCOTLAND head coach Gregor Townsend admits he may not have been as bold with his experimental line-up for Saturday’s meeting against Argentina had it been a Six Nations game. Townsend has selected two stand-offs in his starting XV, with first-choice No 10 Finn Russell moving to inside centre to accommodate Adam Hastings for the fourth and final autumn Test. It is a combination that is sure to intrigue and excite the Murrayfield crowd, although it is not without an element of risk. And Townsend admitted he was forced into such a selection decision due to injuries to centres Matt Scott, Sam Johnson and long term-absentees Duncan Taylor and Mark Bennett. But he has told Russell and Hastings, two of the most
attack-minded players in the Scotland squad that, if things go well, it could be a tactic he deploys again. ‘If this had been a Six Nations game, it might not have been the selection — Adam at ten and Finn at 12 — we would have put out there,’ said Townsend. ‘But if they go well together on Saturday and show what they can do, it could be the selection we put out there for the first Six Nations game when it comes around. ‘The November Tests give us an opportunity to look at different things and, although we were forced into this decision a bit in this case, we believe it will work.’ Townsend said he no qualms handing the No 10 jersey to 22-year-old Hastings as he has the experienced Russell one side of him and captain Greig Laidlaw on the other, in a team that shows eight changes to the one that lost to South Africa last weekend. ‘Given Adam’s form, we’d like to give him a second start of the November Tests at fly-half and having Finn and Greig either side will help a lot,’ added Townsend. ‘Finn’s always been in excellent form as a ten so we never looked at moving him from there until now. With Adam playing so well, we can give them both a start. ‘I’m not sure if it would have happened if we had Matt Scott and Sam Johnson available, but we’re looking forward to Adam and Finn starting together. ‘Finn has played 12 before and obviously he has to defend differently. He has to carry ball as a second receiver and we want him getting as many touches at first receiver as he can. ‘Playing centre will also allow us to see other aspects of his game which are strong, like his carrying game. ‘He’s also hard to put down, has a good offloading game and a good awareness of defences to pick the right running lines. ‘Last week against South Africa, we would have liked to have seen more of Finn as a ball carrier at ten. We didn’t due to the very strong defence we were against. ‘I spoke to him about changing positions and he was okay with it. He’s certainly enjoyed the parts of the games when he and Adam played together.’