WRIGHT: IT’S UP TO PLAYER TO MAKE FIRST MOVE TO SALVAGE HIS CAREER

Finn Russell has been told it is down to him to salvage his Scotland career after he was stood down for the Six Nations opener with Ireland following “a breach of protocol”.

Former Lions prop Peter Wright has warned the stand-off he will need to make the first move if he wants to mend his relationship with national coach Gregor Townsend.

“I would hope that they can get this patched up soon”, Wright, capped 21 times by Scotland, said.

“Who makes the first move, though? I’d suggest it’s probably down to Finn if he is the one who has left.

“It’s a real sticky situation – but I think it’s easier for Finn to come back and be the humble guy. He has to make a decision about what has he done, has he lost the plot a wee bit, is it time to extend an olive branch to Gregor? Or will he decide he’s just not going to play for Scotland under Gregor?

“If Scotland do well this year without him, that could end up being a long time.”

Since news of the fall-out broke, Russell has “liked” a number of social media posts, including a tweet which says there is “nothing wrong with standing up for yourself ”.

The job of building bridges between the former Glasgow star and his old Warriors boss Townsend could fall to new skipper Stuart Hogg.

However, Wright said: “If you had Greig Laidlaw or John Barclay as captain, it might have been easier to do that. This situation just heaps more pressure on Hogg. Is he the man to broker a peace deal?

“Or do you go outwith the camp and bring in Mark Dodson or perhaps a respected rugby figure like John Jeffrey?”