Scottish Rugby

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England head coach Steve Borthwick has called for more support for "phenomenal" Scotland counterpart Gregor Townsend.

The 52-year-old, who is under contract until after the 2027 World Cup, has come under increasing scrutiny after Scotland's 18-15 defeat by Italy in Rome in their Six Nations opener.

Former national team captain John Barclay even declared earlier this week that if the Scots fail to finish in the top three then "it becomes a necessity to see change".

Townsend failed to lead Scotland out of the group stage of the 2019 and 2023 World Cups and has never finished higher than third in the Six Nations during his nine years in charge.

But Borthwick, whose England side visit Murrayfield on Saturday, said: "I think Gregor Townsend is a wonderful coach.

"I was told recently that he has the best win record of any Scotland coach in the professional era. Sir Ian McGeechan had two spells and Gregor sits above that.

"The way he has coached the attack they have and the way they move the ball, when they do that they look terrific.

"I have immense respect for him as a coach and I find it surprising that people are not spending more time talking about Scotland rather than not supporting their coach.

"He's a phenomenal coach and they should spend more time supporting him."

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Pieter de Villiers has urged Scotland to quieten the "outside noise" and reignite their Six Nations campaign with victory over England at Murrayfield on Saturday.

Gregor Townsend and his team have come under intense criticism since opening with a dismal 18-15 by Italy in Rome.

But scrum coach De Villiers insists they can claw themselves back into title contention by lifting the Calcutta Cup.

"It's only the second game of the tournament, any team in the tournament can still win it," he said.

"Italy will go out and surprise other teams as well, they're a really good outfit and I think it's going to be tight all around this tournament.

"It's important that we get that enthusiasm back to go and deliver a great game.

"A result against England obviously will turn everything around and put us on the right track to win this tournament.

"On Sunday everyone needed a pick-up because it's obviously a big disappointment, but I think everyone is squarely back on the horse.

"With such a big game coming up, the passion that is around this game ignites everyone to the top level. The concentration levels are there and the excitement is there.

"There will always be outside noise going on, that's the nature of this game.

"It's high-stakes, it's Six Nations, and if you don't get results, fans out there will be disappointed and people will obviously look into things and maybe want change.

"But for us nothing changes in terms of what we do on a day-to-day basis.

"Yes, we would have liked a better result but this weekend is a perfect opportunity to go and do it in a high-stakes game where both teams will be very passionate and driven to deliver a result."

Tom English and Andy Burke analyse Scotland's dreadful start to the Six Nations after the lacklustre performance against Italy in Rome.

They answer audience questions on team selection, the use of the bench, the mounting pressure on Gregor Townsend and they look forward to the Calcutta Cup.

Listen in full and subscribe to the BBC Scotland Rugby Podcast.

Do you have any burning questions on Scottish rugby for our experts, Tom English and Andy Burke, as Gregor Townsend's Scotland lost 18-15 against Italy in the opening round of the Six Nations?

Send in your questions via this link and a selection of answers will be published on this page later in the week.

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Gregor Brown says Scotland will not suffer a crisis of confidence after a dreadful start to their Six Nations campaign, losing to Italy in a sodden Rome.

The Scots served up a dismal performance in the torrential rain at the Stadio Olimpico as the Azzurri made it back-to-back home wins over Gregor Townsend's side.

England, who are on a 12-game winning run after thumping Wales, are next up for Scotland at Murrayfield as they look to salvage their campaign.

"We don't want to be a team that just talks about improvements and not getting the results," Brown said.

"I think that's where the main frustration comes. We really believe in this game plan, we really believe in what we're doing, in the players that we've got.

"We're sick of talking about it as much as probably the fans are sick of hearing us talk about it.

"We're absolutely gutted we couldn't get the job done. But I think after a result like that and the frustration, England at home at Murrayfield is the perfect occasion to try and bounce back from that.

"For us, this next game is the biggest game of the championship for us. It's something we spoke about, taking it moment by moment. And this next game and the moments in that game are going to be absolutely huge."

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Townsend selections backfire

Many of us commended Gregor Townsend for his bold selections for the Italy game, but the gambles did not pay off at the Stadio Olimpico.

The decision to leave Blair Kinghorn, Darcy Graham and Duhan van der Merwe out of the starting XV was understandable given the superior form of Tom Jordan, Jamie Dobie and Kyle Steyn.

However, the unfamiliar back three was exposed by an Italy side who clearly targeted that area.

Their positional sense was questionable for both Italy tries, they failed to win the aerial battle and offered little in attack.

It will be interesting to see what changes Townsend makes to his back three to face England.

Rome rain does not excuse performance

It would be easy to point to the biblical rain when looking for reasons for Scotland's dismal performance, but there was more to it than that.

The first 20 minutes were played in fairly benign conditions, and that was the period when Italy ultimately won the game.

The Azzurri were setting the agenda in defence, putting in dominant hits and defending with an intensity that was sorely lacking in Scotland's contact work.

In short, Italy looked like they wanted it more.

Set-piece struggles

It's hard to build a foundation to win a Test match without a functioning set-piece, and Scotland were all over the place in this department.

Ewan Ashman's three missed lineouts early on really set the tone. Those were opportunities for Scotland to really take a hold of the game, but squandering such promising attacking positions seemed to sap Scottish confidence and give Italy and their fans a lift.

Again, the line-out errors can not be chalked up entirely to the weather. There seemed to be confusion between thrower, lifters and jumpers as to what was happening. At the top level, that's inexcusable.

We asked you Scotland fans for your views after the 18-15 loss to Italy in the opening round of the Six Nations. Here's a taste of what you had to say...

Ryan: Townsend said himself that this is his best squad. I agree, now we need the best head coach. Bye bye, Gregor.

MoLambo: It is time. Townsend must do the right thing and resign. His leadership, and the team's success, peaked years ago. It seems like he's lost the dressing room - the team didn't show up.

Bearing in mind the numbers of Glasgow Warriors in that side who have been tearing up at club level, the common denominator to failure is Townsend. I'd go as far to say we are now regressing whilst others are fast improving. I've supported Scotland for over 30 years, but yesterday I turned off the match for the first time ever.

Ashley: It's time for Townsend to step down. Scotland need a new direction if they're going to improve. Years of the same mistakes being made on the pitch. Something needs to change.

Greg: Townsend shouldn't have been in charge after the disastrous Argentina game. The Newcastle gig is a big distraction to his commitment to the Scotland job. We all know where he's going after the 2027 RWC. Relieve him of his duties now and get someone in to build for the future.

Pip: A lot of these players are coming in from winning environments and have had Lions experience. The evidence is against Gregor, he's the issue.

Stuart: Surely, this is it for Gregor? I questioned Scotland tactics from the start of this game. No more! Get Franco Smith on the phone now.

Grazer: Absolutely rubbish - clueless, listless and lacking energy. Even at the end we got held up. From the outside, there seems to be no leadership or spirit and that must come from the atmosphere created by the coach and management. We seem to be getting worse each game, and I really fear next week at home against England.

Robbie: That was the one of the worst things I've ever watched in my life. A nation of rain unable to play in rain. Scrums folding up like clothes into a suitcase. Line-outs wonkier than shopping trolley wheels. Woeful from Scotland.

David: Please remove Townsend. He gave us the basis a number of years ago and we have not moved forward. We have generational talent with a good coach. Let's move to a proper championship-winning coach, who picks the best players and knows how to win no matter conditions. Italy played to their strengths but Scotland have more talented players and this should have been a no contest.

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter in Rome

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Kyle Steyn insists Gregor Townsend retains the support of Scotland's players despite the growing number of fans calling for the head coach's exit following defeat to Italy.

Scotland's Six Nations campaign got off to a miserable start as the Azzurri adapted far better to the monsoon conditions at the Stadio Olimpico to claim a deserved 18-15 victory.

It is the latest in a series of damaging defeats under Townsend, and his ninth Six Nations campaign as national coach looks unlikely to yield any improvement on the fourth-place finishes of the past two years.

"We're all behind Gregor," Glasgow Warriors winger Steyn said. "I think, again, it comes down to the boys that were on the pitch today because we had the game plan for these conditions.

"We knew what we were going to do if these conditions came, and again, that game plan created chances. Up to the 23 of us on the pitch, we didn't take those chances.

"So we're all behind Gregor. I understand that there's a lot of noise outside of our huddle around that, but we're not focused on that. We're focused on what's being said inside.

"We're all behind him."

Andy Burke and the team review an opening Six Nations defeat for Scotland, as they lose 18-15 to Italy in Rome.

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Scotland are facing a washout of a Six Nations campaign after suffering a dispiriting opening loss to Italy in rain-soaked Rome.

Read the full match report here.

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Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend tells BBC One: "Hugely disappointed to lose your first game in the tournament, makes things tougher.

"Obviously, the guys are very disappointed. The effort was there. A lot of what we trained was in place. We just gave away too many possessions.

"We just weren't able to score more points in the first half. It was extremely difficult the second half but the effort the players put in was tremendous just not enough to win the game.

"We shouldn't have let them get ahead. They got a couple of breakaway tries. We had opportunities we didn't take and then it made it tough after that.

"Of course there'll be criticism for the result and the performance. I'm with my team. I was hugely proud of the effort they put in at the end, trying to find a way to win. It was really tough and we know we need to be better in that first 20 minutes.

"I believe in them, I believe in what we're doing. Today, it didn't happen and we're going to make sure it happens next week."

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Two Kyle Rowe tries helped Scotland A come from behind to muster a draw with an Italy XV in Rieti.

Despite naming a side packed with full internationalists, the Scots struggled on a poor playing surface but did score the first try through Gregor Hiddleston, when the hooker barged over from close range.

Italy hit back with two converted tries around the half-hour mark before Rowe's first score. This time, Fergus Burke could not convert and the Scots trailed 14-12 at the break.

Into the second half and Cameron Redpath crossed for the visitors to put them in front once more, Burke this time successful from the tee, but a try from tighthead Marcos Gallorini and a penalty from Giovanni Montemauri put the Italians into a 24-19 lead.

But Scotland scored their best try of the night, putting the ball through the hands to find Rowe out wide, and the Glasgow flier dotted down. From wide on the right, Burke pulled his kick and the score remained level until the end.

Scotland A: Paterson, Rowe, Smith, Redpath, Reed; Burke (vc), Warr; Sutherland, Hiddleston, Rae, Gray (c), Craig, Onyeama-Christie (vc), Douglas, Masibaka.

Replacements: Morris, Hepburn, Hurd, Bradbury, Ferrie, Bayliss, Afshar, Lancaster.

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Captain Michele Lamaro believes Italy have changed perceptions and are now taken more seriously by other teams in the Six Nations.

While they have finished fifth in the past two years, Italy won twice in 2024 - only the third time they have racked up two wins in the competition.

Scotland begin their 2026 Six Nations campaign against the Azzurri in Rome on Saturday.

"I think what has changed in the last couple of years is the perception of our team," Lamaro said.

"Teams are not scared of what we can do, but scared of what we might do if we are put in the position to do that.

"We've shown some really good rugby in the last couple of years and we can see how the teams are starting to prepare for us.

"We have the confidence that if we do everything in the proper way, if we put ourselves in the best situation possible, we know we can put Scotland under massive pressure, even from a scoreboard perspective."

While Scotland still have a dominant record against Italy, they lost on their previous visit to Rome - a 31-29 defeat two years ago - and winning margins have also reduced.

"We've been speaking all week about doing what we can control to get to those last 15-20 minutes in contention, and then heart will do the rest," Lamaro said.

"We want to get the crowd going and share that dream with them, make them feel part of it. That's what we need and what they need too."

After taking the wooden spoon in 18 of their 25 years in the Six Nations - and winning no games on 13 occasions - some considered games against Italy as foregone conclusions. Lamaro is convinced that is no longer the case.

"We've been through some really tough moments in the past, so to be able to get that dream going again, it's a really massive thing for us," he said.

"And now seeing that tomorrow we'll have 70,000 people at the Stadio Olimpico, it's something that makes us unbelievably proud, and it gives us a lot of confidence that we're going in the right direction."