Scottish Rugby

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Dependable Darge to the fore again

Huw Jones grabbed the headlines with his hat-trick of tries, but Rory Darge was arguably the best player on the pitch.

The Glasgow flanker is perhaps a victim of his own consistence excellence. It's rare he ever delivers anything less than an eight out of 10 performance and as a result, we often take for granted just how good he is.

His display against Italy had everything – the opening try, crucial turnovers, excellent carries and some superb defence in key moments.

As always seems to be the case, the competition for spots in the Lions back-row is probably the fiercest of any area in the team, but Darge should be in the conversation.

Cherry justifies Townsend's faith

The selection of Dave Cherry to start at hooker ahead of Ewan Ashman - his first Test appearance since the 2023 Rugby World Cup - raised more than a few eyebrows, but the Edinburgh man more than justified Gregor Townsend's faith with an excellent performance.

It was Cherry as much as any player who set the tone for Scotland's fast start, carrying hard and often into the heart of the Italian defence.

His set-piece work was cited by Townsend as the big reason for giving Cherry the nod and the lineout and scrum functioned well to give Scotland an attacking platform.

The entire front row put in a colossal shift, with Pierre Schoeman and the outstanding Zander Fagerson getting through a mountain of work with and without the ball.

There's a case to suggest Ashman's more dynamic ball-carrying will be favoured against Ireland, but Scotland will need that set-piece foundation to stand a chance, and that could tip the scales in Cherry's favour to keep hold of the number two jersey.

McDowall or Jordan – who starts at 12?

There was a lot of pressure on Stafford McDowall's shoulders against Italy, filling the huge void left by the injured captain Sione Tuipulotu.

McDowall did fine. He defended well against the talented duo of Juan Ignacio Brex and Tommaso Menoncello, though he did not offer as much going forward as he might have done.

The backline looked sharper in attack when Tom Jordan came off the bench and it poses a fascinating dilemma for Townsend ahead of the Ireland game.

Did Jordan's display prove he should be in from the start? Or confirm that he brings exactly the kind of impetus from the bench that will be required against the defending champions?

With Bundee Aki and Garry Ringrose looking strong against England, it's a selection the head coach simply has to get right.

Scotland fans, were you at Murrayfield to watch Gregor Townsend's side start their Six Nations campaign with victory over Italy or were you following along from home?

Either way, we want your thoughts. Who impressed you? Are you confident before next weekend's match against Ireland?

Have your say., external

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Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend tells BBC Sport: "I think a lot of the forwards provided a platform at times, they worked really hard.

"We had to defend our line on two or three occasions in that second half so it was a tough opening game but we managed to get the win.

"I was more frustrated with the minutes and the opportunities before the score was level we weren't taking. If you're knocking on the door, and you continue to knock on the door, those moments will come.

"Credit to the players to get the win and that bonus point which might be important in the end.

"There were a lot of positives aspects today. Huw [Jones] is a very, very good defender. Today he supported very well and it's great that he got those tries.

"There was a physical challenge today. The most important element today was the mental challenge. To come together as a team on the field to find solutions and find a way to win which will be important in the next games."

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Scotland hat-trick hero and player of the match Huw Jones tells BBC Sport: "I'm pretty happy.

"It's not every day you manage to get on the end of three so thanks to the boys for setting me up.

"It was a big turning point [Jones' second try], there wasn't really anything on for him but Darcy [Graham] will find a gap when there isn't one. I just had to try and keep up with him.

"I don't want to say that our confidence is sky high, we're happy with the win today but our focus is on taking it week by week."

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Glasgow Warriors fell to a fourth-consecutive Celtic Challenge defeat as they were outclassed by defending champions Wolfhounds at Scotstoun.

Warriors raced into an early lead through Briar McNamara's try in their first home game this campaign but were 33 points behind just after the second-half restart after dominant Wolfhounds showed their quality.

Ceitidh Ainsworth and Emily Coubrough scored second-half tries as Warriors fought to claw back some of the deficit.

The result leaves the hosts second bottom of the competition table, level on points with bottom side Brython Thunder.

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Scotland's wretched run in the Under-20s Six Nations continued with 22-10 loss to Italy in Edinburgh.

With just one victory in the tournament since 2021, the Scots struck first at The Hive, with Billy Allen scoring from a maul.

However, the visitors were able to feed on errors and Federico Zanandrea profited from an interception to make sure Italy led 7-5 at the interval.

Italy scrum-half Niccolo Beni stretched that lead following an impressive surge from Jules Ducros.

Eduardo Todaro then sliced through two tackles to plunge under the posts.

Seb Stephen was held up on the line as Scotland applied some late pressure and fellow replacement Ollie Duncan crashed through soon after, selling a neat dummy pass on his way through from close range.

Any hopes of a home rally were extinguished when the conversion was missed and Italy knocked over a penalty in the closing moments.

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Image source, SNS

Italy back-row Sebastian Negri believes Scotland will be out to avenge their loss to the Azzurri in Rome last year when they begin their Six Nations campaign at Murrayfield on Saturday.

A 31-29 loss at the Stadio Olimpico ended Scotland's title hopes in the 2024 tournament and Negri believes that will fuel Gregor Townsend's side.

"We know Scotland will be hurting from that," Negri said.

"We know they've talked about putting things right and a bit of revenge, so we've got to expect that."

As well as beating the Scots, Italy drew with France and beat Wales in last season's championship and there is a feeling that after years of consistently being the weakest side in the tournament, Gonzalo Quesada's team are now ready to compete.

"I feel like we're in a really good cycle at the moment," Negri added.

"Obviously, we've been through ups and downs as a team. But I feel like this is a really good Italian team to be a part of. We can't shy away from that.

"And it's a different challenge for us now. With the cycle and where we are as a team, we've got to put in some performances and get some results. That's an exciting thing to be a part of.

"We're under no illusions. We know it's going to be a tough game. I looked at their team yesterday. I just see a really quality team there. Full of depth.

"You say that maybe Italy are probably in one of their better cycles, that we're a really good team. I look at Scotland and I can say exactly the same."

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Former Scotland number eight Johnnie Beattie says the current side is "the best I've seen" but that success in this year's Six Nations "would be a top-three finish".

Scotland, who get under way against Italy at Murrayfield on Saturday, are without injured captain Sione Tuipulotu for the championship.

"This is the best Scottish side I've seen", Beattie told BBC Sport. "It is the best-coached side and in terms of talent the best since they won the last Five Nations in 1999. However, other sides have a greater depth of talent.

"Tuipulotu has been our brightest spark over the last three years with the way he challenges the gainline physically and brings Huw Jones on to the ball with short passes.

"It will be a huge opportunity for Stafford McDowall, who operated at a high level in the autumn. He knows his role as it is similar to how Glasgow play.

"Success for Scotland would be a top-three finish."

Beattie has picked out Darcy Graham - absolutely electric on the wing" - as his player to watch and is backing Jonny Gray to be a Lions bolter.

"After pretty much two years out of the game he has come back this year for Bordeaux and been just incessant in the way he plays the game," Beattie said. "He doesn't miss tackles and is always in the game."

Read more Six Nations predictions

We asked for your thoughts after Scotland named their team to face Italy in the first round of the Six Nations on Saturday.

Here's the best of what you had to say:

Nathan: For many years Scotland have struggled to compete with the big teams in the front five. While we have a decent group starting, we lack depth at hooker, tight-head and second row. Could be a long Six Nations!

Steven: As strong a side that Scotland can put out, looking to get the campaign off to as good a start as possible. Dave Cherry might be seen as a surprise inclusion but for my money he's the best lineout thrower we have and might be in there to try and get our set-piece ticking over. The physicality that Ewan Ashman brings might not be needed for this game.

Paul: It's not our optimal side, but Gregor Townsend has striven to build depth and strengthen the mental fragility that was clear in the close shave against Wales and the loss to Italy. Big strides have been made if the performances in the autumn are anything to go by. If the coaches believe the players are fit they should have the skill and mental capacity to win.

Andy: A similar situation at hooker to the days where John Allan and Kenny Milne shared the position. Milne was for me the better all round player but Allan seemed to be an SRU favourite. Ashman and Cherry have the nod ahead of Johnny Mathews and I'm dumbfounded why.

Stuart: Townsend seems determined to throw a curve ball every time Scotland play. Ali Price in the autumn series and now Cherry in the Six Nations. The trouble is history shows he invariably gets it wrong. He has had perhaps the strongest squad Scotland have had in many years but has failed to take them to the next level. This must be his swan song.

Brian: I like the Cherry selection but I'm perplexed at Jamie Ritchie's inclusion, although he did have a good game against Australia. For me, Matt Fagerson, Rory Darge and Dempsey should be the first-choice back row. Would love to have seen Rory Hutchinson at 12. Silky smooth and very effective.