Ollie Lawrence v Cameron Redpath: Scotland pit former England U20 teammates against each...

[ASFN Admin]

Gregor Townsend’s ability to pull a selectorial rabbit out of the hat was once again in evidence as the Scotland coach named his side for Saturday’s Calcutta Cup clash at Twickenham. Although well trailed, his selection of uncapped Cameron Redpath at inside centre represents a bold move which pits the Bath threequarter against his former international Under-20s midfield partner Ollie Lawrence, who starts at inside centre for England. Six Nations 2021 fixtures: Match dates, start times and full TV schedule Although there were a couple of marginal calls elsewhere for Townsend, mainly at No 8 where Matt Fagerson pipped Gary Graham to a starting spot, injuries and a lack of game time for several players meant that Townsend’s starting side was pretty much as expected. There were, however, several interesting selections on the bench, which includes pugnacious scrum-half Scott Steele, veteran lock Richie Gray and a prolific try-scorer in Huw Jones. However, most attention rightly focused on Repath’s selection. The son of former Scotland captain Bryan Redpath, he was born in France and raised in England, and has been the subject of a protracted tug-of-war between Scotland, for whom he played age-grade rugby, and England, for whose U20s he scored a try against Scotland in 2019. He even went as far as declaring for England and being included in a senior England squad under Eddie Jones before recently recanting. Jones has so far kept his counsel on Redpath’s decision to switch allegiance to Scotland, but in naming his England side allowed his selections to speak for him. By moving ultra-physical 21-year-old centre Ollie Lawrence from 13 to 12, he places the two former England U20s teammates on a collision course.

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