During a press briefing yesterday, Gregor Townsend momentarily feigned frustration as he interjected, “Can we please return to discussing Scotland?”
It appears Townsend is content to receive the substantial paycheck from Red Bull but seems less comfortable with the increased attention that accompanies it.
To put it plainly, if Scotland’s head coach prefers to avoid questions and discussions about his contentious decision to accept a secondary role—one that arguably favors his new employer more than Scottish Rugby—perhaps he should have declined the offer initially.
Townsend’s preference was to direct attention toward the 45-man roster he had just unveiled for the upcoming autumn international series, which includes four home games against the USA, New Zealand, Argentina, and Tonga.
The squad features three newcomers: Harri Morris and Liam McConnell from Edinburgh, and Alex Masibaka from Montpellier. Meanwhile, Glasgow’s injured duo, Zander Fagerson and Rory Darge, will be granted time to prove their fitness up until the week of the match against the All Blacks.
Considering Scotland’s limited options at tighthead, the absence of Fagerson would be a significant setback. Cam Redpath and Johnny Matthews were the most surprising exclusions from the squad.
Gregor Townsend says he will scale back his Red Bull role if it begins to affect Scotland
Townsend will act as a consultant to Newcastle, who were recently acquired by Red Bull
Edinburgh hooker Harry Morris has been called up to the Scotland squad for the first time
Whether Townsend likes it or not, however, his new role with Red Bull and the fortunes of the Scotland national team are now inextricably linked.
If the team underperforms in any of next month’s matches then aggrieved supporters, rightly or wrongly, will feel within their rights to grumble that they might have been better prepared if their boss hadn’t been swanning around Salzburg, inspecting ice hockey facilities and hob-nobbing with Red Bull bigwigs. That’s the harsh reality of the situation that Townsend now finds himself in.
Then there is the Newcastle Red Bulls angle. Townsend has insisted he will have no official input into the English Prem club’s recruitment policy but they aren’t paying him to not have an opinion.
If Scottish Rugby wants to sign a player — Ben White being a recent example — for either Glasgow Warriors or Edinburgh but Newcastle are also interested, then where do Townsend’s loyalties lie? It is a situation fraught with conflict and danger.
‘That’s something that obviously we’ve discussed with Scottish Rugby,’ he insisted. ‘Newcastle and Red Bull use a recruitment company but if any information did come my way that involved a Scotland player, I would flag that to Scottish Rugby.
‘Now, after that, it’s a case of them being an independent club and being able to sign who they want. It’s an open market but I would have to make sure that Scottish Rugby are aware of that. So that’s on me, to make sure that anything we deem as a potential conflict of interest, I’m in those communications with Scottish Rugby.
‘Everyone’s got their opinions. [Taking on this role] is something that obviously I talked about with Scottish Rugby, and the benefits that we saw in the role. It’s in my own time and I’d like to learn from other sports and organisations.
‘This gives me an opportunity to do that but it’s not going to be something that I’m focusing on in the next few weeks because that’s going to be the Scotland job.’
Montpellier’s Alex Masibaka has trained with Scotland before and could make his debut
That’s a relief as this is a four-week challenge that will need his full attention. The United States and Tonga should both be taken care of with relative ease — even with only Scottish-based players to call upon for the series opener — but the middle two matches against the All Blacks and Argentina will both be thoroughly demanding and draining encounters.
Townsend can call upon one of the best backlines in the game and, for the first time since the World Cup, has Darcy Graham, Duhan van der Merwe and Kyle Steyn all fit and available. Throw in Finn Russell, Blair Kinghorn and Sione Tuipulotu and it is an attacking threat as good as anywhere in the world.
Alas, the picture isn’t anywhere near as rosy up front, which is where the matches with New Zealand and the ever-improving Argentina will likely be won and lost. There is a mixture of youth and experience in the squad with uncapped pair Morris and McConnell at one end and veterans like Grant Gilchrist, Elliot Millar Mills and Rory Sutherland at the other.
But, given the enormity of the task ahead, it is no surprise that Townsend will give Fagerson and Darge as long as possible to prove their fitness. Could the Glasgow prop go straight into an All Blacks match having not played at all since early April?
‘That’ll be the question I’ll have to answer in about a week’s time,’ replied Townsend. ‘We know how Zander’s progressing. He’s started some scrummaging, he’s running. We will want to see him train next week in full scrums.
‘We believe he’ll be back to full training and available for that New Zealand game. But, right now, I can’t honestly make a call on whether we think he’ll be playing against New Zealand.
Zander Fagerson has been out injured and will have to prove his fitness ahead of Scotland duty
‘We have one of the best tightheads in the world and have had for a number of years. That is a brilliant position to be in.
‘Zander played 80 minutes against France and was outstanding against one of the biggest packs in the world. I think they were 7-1 that day on the bench and scrummed really well but Zander was carrying right to the end of the game. His value to the team is very high.
‘We know him as a player, how he’s responded after injuries and what his value is to the team. But we need to see him at training.
‘We need to get a feel for where he is and that’ll be through the coaches’ contributions and Zander and the medics to say, “Right, you’re ready to go” or it’s the following week [against Argentina] or even Tonga. But our aim is to be able to have both Zander and Rory in that selection discussion on the Monday of the New Zealand week.’
