SPORTSMAIL SPECIAL
GREGOR JOY TINGED WITH SADNESS
GREGOR Townsend last night admitted he had ‘mixed emotions’ over the number of Scots selected for the British and Irish Lions tour — as he believed Warren Gatland could have picked even more.
Scotland’s head coach felt great pride in having eight of his players selected in the 37-man squad for South Africa, the nation’s largest representation since 1989.
But he felt bad for those who missed out despite impressive performances in the Six Nations and at club level. Although he didn’t name names, Sportsmail understands that Jonny Gray and Jamie Ritchie were two he tried — and failed — to convince Gatland to select.
‘I am delighted for those guys selected and I know they will do really well on the tour but I have mixed emotions,’ said Townsend. ‘I know players have missed out that I have close working relationships with, players I worked with at club and international level.
‘I have experienced being left out of a Lions squad and I had the phone call in 2001 telling me I wasn’t in it. It’s a different way of finding out today, but it will be tough for them. That remained the biggest blow in my playing career, so I know it will be hard for the guys that will miss out but for those selected it will be a huge highlight.’
In his role as attack coach to Gatland, Townsend (right) put forward a strong case for several players but acknowledged that, when it came down to final selection, he was only looking at the best mix for the Lions regardless of where the players come from.
‘It doesn’t come down to nationalities,’ he said. ‘It comes down to each position, from loosehead to full-back.
‘Over the last few weeks, my mantra has been finding out about the other players that I don’t know as well but, ultimately, selection is based on Six Nations performances, some in recent weeks, and those who have succeeded for the Lions in the past. It’s really good we have balance from all four countries, as they have been really competitive over the last two years and it makes it an exciting Lions tour with the quality we have.’
Townsend was especially pleased for centre Chris Harris, who many thought wouldn’t make the squad. He took time to win over Scotland fans after a nightmare first start against Wales in the Six Nations but has emerged as one of the best defenders in the northern hemisphere. When others were losing faith in him earlier in his international career, Townsend stuck with him. ‘It’s testament to Chris’ determination to make the most of his career and his improvement as a player that has led to him being selected. He’s shown us time and again why he plays international rugby for Scotland,’ he said.
‘For instance, he didn’t play in one of the 2019 World Cup warm-up matches, then at training and in games afterwards he forced his way into the starting team.
‘Since then, he’s been the No13 for Scotland in 90 per cent of our games and, in the last two years, the Scotland defence has been the best in the Six Nations.
‘A lot of that is down to the work done by our defence coach Steve Tandy but a lot of it is down to individuals like Chris as defending at 13 is a key position. It is credit
to him how he has bounced back from adversity.’
And then there is Finn Russell. Townsend and the fly-half had an infamous bust-up which saw Russell miss the whole 2019 Six Nations but that is clearly all behind them now.
Some pundits doubted if Gatland would select the mercurial star, but Townsend really talked him up in selection meetings.
‘Finn can bring a real point of difference,’ he said. ‘He has a skill set not many players in world rugby possess. His passing, his kicking, his reading of defences. He is a competitor and up against two real competitors in Dan Biggar and Owen Farrell for that position. The three tens will be the players I work with most.
‘A lot of it will be down to form and how well those tens can get the attack going, how well they work with players around them. Finn has shown he can play a real balanced game as well and, when it comes to the Test series, balance will be important. Knowing when to attack, when to turn the pressure back on South Africa through other means.’
Townsend said South Africa-born winger Duhan van der Merwe, who qualifies for Scotland through residency, had been selected because of his physicality. Since he made his Scotland debut, he has been hard to stop in attack but looked suspect in defence, something he will have to work on ahead of this tour.
‘Over the last six months, he has shown he is made for Test rugby,’ said Townsend, ‘and there is a lot more to come from him.
‘We were impressed with how he trained, how he fitted into the Scotland team and these are things that will be crucial with the Lions. How you integrate with new team-mates, how hard you train, how open you are to feedback.
‘He has undoubted strengths with his physicality, his ability to break tackles and his speed, so our job as coaches is making sure the players show their strengths over the six weeks.’