I WON’T OUIT
Townsend says he remains the man to restore Scots’ fortunes
GREGOR TOWNSEND is determined to rescue Scotland’s battered rugby reputation and will not quit despite a disappointing World Cup campaign ending before the knockout stage. A 28-21 defeat to hosts Japan in an emotionally charged encounter here yesterday signalled the end for the national team — and fuelled the inquest into what has gone wrong under Townsend’s tenure. But the Scotland coach, who is under contract until the summer of 2021, insists he remains the man to turn around the team’s fortunes and that the experiences in Japan will make for a stronger Scotland in the future. ‘There’s a lot more in this team,’ said Townsend (left). ‘Experiences are what make you as a group and how you react to those experiences. It was a
unique situation we were in. We always knew it was going to be a challenge given our four-day turnaround between games. ‘We came here with high aspirations and getting out of the pool stage was one of those. We have worked really hard over the last four months and throughout the tournament to go further than we did. ‘We had the team and we had the ability at the start of the game to go on and win it by the necessary amount of points. That we didn’t was hugely disappointing. ‘We have to learn from that and we’ve got to improve as we get to our next tournament, the Six Nations.’ Townsend admitted his side gifted Japan tries and struggled to come to terms with a team inspired by the fall-out to the typhoon that ravaged the country. A raucous crowd lifted the hosts, who blew Scotland away despite a fast start that saw Finn Russell score the opening try. The fast-flowing and powerful Japan side then ran in four unanswered tries to leave Scotland facing an impossible task even though second-half scores from WP Nel and Zander Fagerson offered hope. ‘We started very well in attack and defence but we didn’t see much of the ball for the rest of the first half,’ said Townsend. ‘That was partly due to the errors we made but also due to what Japan were doing when they had the ball. ‘Two tries were soft, both from our possession. One from a 22 restart and another one the ball was ripped out. ‘That happened either side of half-time and that made it very difficult for us to get the result we were looking for. ‘The players put a huge effort into the next 15 minutes and with 58 minutes gone, we were only seven points behind but we did not do enough to get the win.’ Insisting the build-up to the game, threats of legal action and the impact of Typhoon Hagibis had not affected his players, Townsend added: ‘My players acted very professionally. ‘We always believed the game was going to go ahead. We acted that way in our preparations. We knew this week was going to be a challenge but I look at how we started the game — where the players were in terms of their energy. ‘After that, our errors gave Japan the ball and they made the most of that. They are in great form. The sign of a quality team is taking opportunities and they did that. ‘You can tell they have been together for a long time. They know the game that they play. The game suits their strengths. ‘When you play a tournament at home, you maybe bring ten or 20 per cent more. It will be a tough game for South Africa against them in the quarter-finals.’ Meanwhile, Scotland captain Greig Laidlaw admitted he was weighing up his international future. ‘We’re disappointed as a group because we had aspirations to come here and do well,’ he said. ‘It is not about me at this moment in time. It is about the team. ‘I will go away and have a think. It is about staying together as a group and learning from the situation in the meantime.’