And downs in recruitment process

someone who plays in the English system to commit to Scotland.”

Graham’s situation took another twist last week when he was overlooked by England coach Eddie Jones, not something Townsend had expected. Could Graham, who made England’s Six Nations squad in January, still be in contention?

“Of course I would consider him,” Townsend said. “He’s a player we were keen to involve in the squad last year but, unfortunately for us, England had a training camp before us and picked him.

“He’s someone who has a lot of the traits we look for in a player. He’s got good work ethic, he’s tough, he’s a very good ball carrier for a seven, but the competition in that area is fierce. We’ve got some very good players in that position who have missed out on this squad.”

The addition of another Autumn Test – against Wales in Cardiff on November 3 for the Doddie Weir Cup – has placed extra demands on the resources at Glasgow and Edinburgh. Four Tests in November may become the norm and, while sympathetic to the needs and requirements at pro team level, Townsend also has a World Cup year fast approaching.

“We’ll endeavour to make their preparations go as well as they can. That might be changing things about our camp to release players back early, but the fixtures are in place and between us – between the national team and the pro teams – we’ve got to make sure the preparations are right.

“There’s an extra Test that we haven’t played [before], but other teams have regularly played that. Wales have done it for a number of years, England have done it for a number of years and Ireland have begun to do it over the past two or three years.

“We’re not doing anything that is different to other teams. A year ago, there was a proposal for a fourth Test and, at the time, I thought it was something we didn’t need as an international team. Obviously, we’ve decided to go down that route this year with playing a northern hemisphere team. Maybe that’s the change.

“Obviously it won’t happen next year. After that, you’d have to ask someone else about that. There’s a lot of talk about international seasons changing, having leagues or compet-itions.

“I think everyone is waiting to see what the international calendar will look like after the World Cup. But I don’t know what the norm will be after the World Cup.”

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