Anyone surprised by the selection of Finn Russell for the Calcutta Cup match on Saturday failed to take into account two factors. One is the calm, forgiving nature of Gregor Townsend, the Scotland coach who, as a former stand-off, arguably has a keener insight than anyone else into Russell’s complex make-up. The other is the lack of any viable alternative to the creative versatility offered by the Glasgow Warriors’ playmaker, whose performance in the win against France was patchy, but who more than anyone else embodies the coach’s ideal of a fast, adventurous style.
Townsend, to whom adjectives such as enigmatic and mercurial were often attached during his own playing days, chose to talk up Russell this week, suggesting his side could well have scored another couple of tries in the 32-26 win against the French had he stayed on. Every athlete welcomes such supportive comments from his coaches but it is hard to envisage Russell feeling in particular need of them just because his game against the French was flawed. He is a resilient individual who, as John Barclay said on Friday, has a record of recovering rapidly from setbacks.
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“He’s had some games when he’s not played as well as he could,” the Scotland captain said. “He typically bounces back. I’ve seen him not play his best game then typically next week he’s made man of the match.
“Finn would be the first to admit he’s probably not had his best first two games but he has also done some really good things. The scrutiny is always huge on the No 10 and the nature of the beast is that the negatives get pointed out more than the positives. Finn thrives on pressure. He loves that element of the game.”
Having served an apprenticeship as a stonemason before becoming a professional rugby player, the 25-year-old Russell is down to earth and approachable. At the same time he is also self-deprecating, lighthearted and playful – qualities that have been misinterpreted, not least by Sir Clive Woodward, who claimed he knew Scotland were going to lose to Wales when he saw Russell grinning when the teams lined up before kick-off.
“He’s a very relaxed character but that shouldn’t be mistaken for not taking the game seriously,” Barclay said. “He’s as disappointed as anyone if the team doesn’t perform well or if he doesn’t play well.
“He’s one of the guys on the laptops the most doing the analysis. His personality is not going to change. That’s what makes him play the way he does when he plays so well – that he’s able to take on challenges on the pitch.”
Scotland are never guaranteed to get everything right with Russell at 10 but they have a better chance than they would with anyone else. Duncan Weir, once his rival with Glasgow and Scotland, has faded since moving to Edinburgh. Adam Hastings, his understudy at Glasgow, is at 21 some way short of the solidity required at Test level. Blair Kinghorn, who is on the bench on Saturday, joined Edinburgh as a stand-off but has made a successful transition to full-back.
Peter Horne, Scotland’s inside centre, played well at 10 in the 2016 home win against France when Russell was unavailable but he is at his most effective alongside his Warriors team-mate. Horne is the éminence grise of the operation, a studious player who pulls the strings without drawing too much attention to himself.
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“I like to think that I help Finn out, take a bit of the pressure off him,” he said. “A big role in my game is trying to organise everyone outside of Finn, give him lots of chat so that he can take care of the first phase, and then when he’s coming round the corner I’ll hopefully have everything organised for him.
“We’re probably not at the same stage as [George] Ford and [Owen] Farrell, but we’ve got a really good relationship. I like to think it’s rare that you see Finn have a bad game and I’m outside him. When you’re at 10 you’ve got so much to worry about, so you can’t underestimate the value of having somebody out there just organising and calling new things.”
Russell joins Racing 92 this summer in a move that could define his career. His loss will be keenly felt at Glasgow but, if his style of play matures in France and he becomes more dependable while retaining his unpredictability, that loss should be outweighed by the benefits to Scotland.