Scottish Rugby

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend has been speaking to the media after naming his side to face the USA in the first Autumn Nations Series match.

• Townsend has opted for a "balance of players who are experienced ... and players in the squad for the first time", with the likes of Scott Cummings selected to "build up minutes" before tougher Tests.

• Back-row Liam McConnell, 21, will bring aggression to the side on his Test debut, having been selected based on "what he's done with Edinburgh" but also "his potential".

• Townsend paid tribute to Duhan van der Merwe prior to his 50th cap, saying the winger has had "so many special moments" in his five years in a Scotland shirt and has "evolved his game" to become "a defence leader", but still has "a lot more to come".

• ⁠Tighthead prop Zander Fagerson and openside Rory Darge are still on track to be fit for the New Zealand game, with the former training on Tuesday and Wednesday this week. Darge is yet to reach that stage.

• Asked if the target should be four victories from four this autumn, Townsend says his team go into every game aiming to win. "We believe our players can win against any team we come up against," he adds.

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Back-rower Liam McConnell admits he did not anticipate being called up by Scotland after just six senior club starts.

The 21-year-old had made only five senior appearances for Edinburgh - four of them as a substitute before this season.

After starting four of his club's five United Rugby Championship matches this term, however, McConnell has been given the chance to make his full Scotland debut after being named in the squad for Tests against the United States, New Zealand, Argentina and Tonga.

"I guess when you're playing you maybe always hope that you might get a call," McConnell said.

"You kind of know what day the phone calls are going out, so you're maybe sitting a bit closer to your phone that day.

"I wasn't waiting on it, but when it came it was definitely a surprise. I was just over the moon to be starting for Edinburgh, even just playing for Edinburgh.

"This is not how I expected the season to go really."

McConnell says his expectation is to train and learn as much as he can during the Autumn window, rather than expect to get time on the pitch.

"Mainly just experience, seeing what some of the best players do and how they train," he said when asked what he hoped to get from the next month.

"Obviously if the opportunity to get a cap did happen, then that as well. That would be awesome. I'm just happy to be here, learning from everyone."

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Chris Paterson believes Scotland can beat New Zealand for the first time but cautions Gregor Townsend's side face "a completely different beast".

The All Blacks lost to South Africa and Argentina in the recent Rugby Championship, with the Springboks taking the title.

On the BBC Scotland Rugby Podcast, co-host Tom English suggested the Scots are "going to win" their second autumn Test against New Zealand on 8 November.

Townsend's team face the United States on Saturday (17:40 GMT), with the All Blacks opening their tour series in Ireland later in the day (20:00).

"The quality of the players Scotland have is as good as it's ever been," said Paterson, who scored 809 points in 109 Scotland appearances.

"They have had big wins in recent memory. Can Scotland win big one-off games? They have done. I think they can with the quality we've got.

"The All Blacks are a completely different beast. We've never beaten them. The All Blacks have some phenomenal players.

"The All Blacks have lost more games than, I suppose, they used to. So maybe that sharpens their mentality and sharpens their mind or maybe it dents their aura a little bit.

"They're an incredible outfit - physical, dynamic, willing to play, love the challenge, absolutely thrive on being questioned."

And Paterson added: "It's always exciting when international rugby comes around. Four different challenges. A lot to look forward to.

"A lot to play for - you're almost at that midway point between World Cups. Test matches, they're not running out but we're certainly halfway towards the next one.

"You have to deal with what's in front of you. Performances matter. A lot of chance to show what you're learned in a Lions tour for those that were away."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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New Scotland defence coach Lee Radford says developing a "killer instinct" against the world's top teams is the next step in the national side's evolution.

Radford will combine his Scotland duties with his current role as Northampton defence coach having replaced Steve Tandy, who left Gregor Townsend's backroom team to become Wales head coach.

Scotland are targeting an historic first victory over New Zealand this autumn, and will also face Argentina, Tonga and the USA, whom they host at Murrayfield on Saturday.

"I think there's two real pluses for the group," Radford said.

"The average age is a good age. It's coming up to their best years. Secondly, the amount of caps they've consistently played together, so the cohesion among the group is another strength.

"I think knocking one or two of those [top] sides off, starting with the All Blacks game and Argentina, it won't do us any harm.

"I think they've showed over the last couple of seasons how well they can compete. Having a little bit of that killer instinct among the big boys is obviously the next step."

Sandy Smith
Fan writer

The weekend started well with sunshine and victory over Glasgow A at the Hive on Saturday afternoon. There was a man-of-the-match award for Tom Currie and another strong performance from Malelili Satala for Edinburgh's A team.

It ended badly with heavy rain and defeat to Cardiff in Wales later the same evening.

Yet even that had begun on a positive note with a debut try from Lewis Wells and a half-time lead of 12-19.

It was like Edinburgh had filled a salt shaker with mistakes and then sprinkled them indiscriminately over the last 40 minutes.

Dropped balls, scrum penalties, mis-fielded kicks. We even managed to waste 30 seconds when time was at a premium by not taking a penalty from the mark and when was the last time you saw anyone pulled up for that?

Cardiff slowed the game in that half which seemed to suit them and the limited pressure they were able to bring to the game was more than enough for Edinburgh to implode.

When the clock ran down the mistakes multiplied. The only lineout and scrum we lost were both in the last 10 minutes.

Over the 80 minutes Cardiff created very little. Edinburgh failed to score a point for 60 minutes and in the whole match not one single pass reached either winger. Edinburgh really were the architects of their own demise.

The salt shaker didn't help the season, it just left Edinburgh with the bitter taste of defeat and a meagre nine points and one win from this opening group of games.

There's a small note on the credit side that they have been close in all the games and as a result have five bonus points. They also have a game in hand but that is an optical illusion with the potential to deepen our problems as opposed to alleviating them.

Some of the lofty pre-season ambitions are already looking a bit far-fetched. In the past four seasons a top-four finish in the URC has meant an average of no more than six defeats. When you are at three and winter is still a bit away you are definitely on the back foot.

The remainder of the season has all the hallmarks of a horror story written by Stephen King and as he has even joked himself, the endings aren't good.

Sandy Smith can be found at The Burgh Watch, external

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Leicester Tigers prop Will Hurd has been added to the Scotland squad for the autumn international series.

The 26-year-old, capped nine times, will not be available for the opening match against the United States (1 November) since it falls outside the Test window, limiting head coach Gregor Townsend's selection to players from Edinburgh and Glasgow Warriors.

Further Murrayfield outings follow against New Zealand (8 November), Argentina (16 November) and Tonga (23 November).

Hurd, who made his debut against Canada on the summer tour of 2024, offers cover at tight-head, with Zander Fagerson in the squad but yet to feature for Glasgow Warriors this season as he makes his way back from a knee injury.

Seven of Hurd's Scotland appearances have come from the bench, with his one try coming on his home debut against Portugal last November.

Scotland squad

Backs: Fergus Burke (Saracens), Jamie Dobie (Glasgow Warriors) Darcy Graham (Edinburgh), Adam Hastings (Glasgow Warriors), Rory Hutchinson (Northampton Saints), George Horne (Glasgow Warriors), Tom Jordan (Bristol Bears), Blair Kinghorn (Toulouse), Stafford McDowall (Glasgow Warriors), Kyle Rowe (Glasgow Warriors), Arron Reed (Sale Sharks), Finn Russell (Bath), Ollie Smith (Glasgow Warriors), Kyle Steyn (Glasgow Warriors), Ross Thompson (Edinburgh), Sione Tuipulotu (Glasgow Warriors), Duhan van der Merwe (Edinburgh), Ben White (Toulon).

Forwards: Ewan Ashman (Edinburgh), Josh Bayliss (Bath), Magnus Bradbury (Edinburgh), Gregor Brown (Glasgow Warriors), Scott Cummings (Glasgow Warriors), Rory Darge (Glasgow Warriors), Jack Dempsey (Glasgow Warriors), Matt Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors), Zander Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors), Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh), Patrick Harrison (Edinburgh), Will Hurd (Leicester Tigers), Nathan McBeth (Glasgow Warriors), Alexander Masibaka (Montpellier), Liam McConnell (Edinburgh Rugby), Elliot Millar Mills (Northampton Saints), Harri Morris (Edinburgh), Andy Onyeama-Christie (Saracens), D'Arcy Rae (Edinburgh), Dylan Richardson (Edinburgh), Jamie Ritchie (Perpignan), Alex Samuel (Glasgow Warriors), Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh Rugby), Rory Sutherland (Glasgow Warriors), Marshall Sykes (Edinburgh), George Turner (Harlequins), Murphy Walker (Glasgow Warriors), Max Williamson (Glasgow Warriors).

Got any burning questions on Scottish rugby? Our chief sports writer Tom English and reporter Andy Burke are ready to answer them.

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

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Jack Dempsey says Glasgow Warriors are on a mission to "earn respect" all over again after falling short in their bid to retain the United Rugby Championship title last season.

Warriors were beaten at the semi-final stage by eventual champions Leinster in Dublin.

Franco Smith's side have started this season with four wins from five league matches, with Dempsey starring in a hard-earned victory over the Bulls on Friday night.

"The reality is we haven't won anything since 2024," Dempsey told BBC Scotland.

"It's not like we're three-peat champions winning every year. We're no longer defending champions, so this year's all about going back and earning respect and getting back on that big stage and big games in both comps."

Dempsey delivered a man-of-the-match display in his first competitive Warriors appearance in seven months having been sidelined with a hamstring injury.

"It did feel good to be honest," said the Scotland number eight.

"I haven't been out that long since I've been in this part of the world. No offence, this place is home for me now, but there's not a whole lot to do around here when you're not playing rugby, I've found, so it's just good to be out there with the boys.

"It was a shame about last year. One of the good things about winning a competition is having a year of being the defending champions and to miss out on a lot of those big games last year, that's what you kind of don't realise you're missing out on until you're missing out on it.

"So it's just good to be back in the saddle now and try and get a roll on."

We asked for your views on Glasgow Warriors' win and Edinburgh's defeat.

Here's what some of you said:

Glasgow 21-12 Bulls

Ethan: Fantastic win for Glasgow as they endured the Bulls and fought hard to take all the points while they left with nothing. It was not pretty at times as there were a few occasions when the Glasgow attack was on the back foot. The scrum needs addressed but the physicality, especially from Matt Fagerson and Jack Dempsey, was vital. Might be kicking themselves that they didn't get the bonus point here (as well as the Benetton loss) which hopefully doesn't bite them in the future, but an important win to beat who, I would say, is consistently the second best team in the league and end the first part of the season with four or five wins.

David: Great win by Glasgow. Showed that Glasgow are an 80 minute team. The victory was reminiscent of the trophy winning performance when they appeared to be dead and buried early in the second half but conjured a couple of tries to win. Bodes well for the rest of the competition, with two wins at Scotstoun over South African opposition.

Paul: Compelling game. The Bulls defended really well and were excellent on the counter. But Glasgow somehow found a way. Really heartening for the future that young players like Gregor Brown and Max Williamson managed to impose their physicality on such a decent South African team.

Jimmy: George Horne was exposed for his lack of gain-line threat and his defensive frailty. Bulls were filling the pitch and holes round the ruck were there to be exposed. Never square to the gain line the Bulls could simply spread wide in defence knowing he was not an attacking threat. Apart from his support lines he is not up to this level. Jamie Dobie is a different belligerent and attacking threat.

Neil: Great performance from Glasgow to grind out the win and make it comfortable by the end. Dempsey was immense for his first game in months. Shambles of a refereeing performance from Craig Evans though. Not biased just horrendously inconsistent.

Stuart: I was there and saw a pretty tough match, lots handling errors from both sides, but the Warriors' "never give up" attitude paid off in the end. Stafford McDowall, Sione Tuipulotu and Dempsey were outstanding. Adam Hastings had a very average game, along with George Horne.

Cardiff 20-19 Edinburgh

Arran: Exciting young talent showing inexperience and complacency on the road. Many positives from performances like that of Lewis Wells and the solid Charlie Shiel and Matthew Scott duo. However, consistency is key and Edinburgh aren't in line as of yet. There needs to be long term thinking in play, or else these youngsters will take opportunities elsewhere.

Nigel: Quite a second half, never seen a rugby team do absolutely nothing in 40 minutes after a decent start,. Truly a "game of one half" from an Edinburgh perspective and real concerns over the basic skills and lack of any structure and game management, and even more concerning that it came as no surprise. A real "sacked in the morning" show from a strong squad and capable coaching team.

Gordon: What can I say, typical Edinburgh. Start the game with a roar, end it with a whimper. That big lad on the wing looked useful, but they never got him the ball. There's none of the intricate backs moves you see at Glasgow, they seem to rely on dominant carries from forwards and if that doesn't work, they have nothing. Another season of under achievement for this team beckons I'm afraid.

Andrew: No change with Edinburgh then. In the second half they didn't fire a shot, no energy, no structure, no idea. Cardiff looked like they had adapted after the first half whereas Edinburgh went into their shells, made error after error gifting yet another game to a team they should be getting a result over. One win out of four says it all.

Brodie: Edinburgh lacked maturity. For all the individual brilliance early on, they couldn't work collectively as a team to put Cardiff away. The farce at the end when Ross Thompson overstepped the mark twice, annoyed the referee and incensed the Cardiff crowd, was just one of many immature moments from Edinburgh on the night. The culture is still not right.

Andy: The worst second half performance I've seen in professional rugby. No fight, no tactics, no inspiration, no strength, no leadership and no clue. Other than the front row that started, the remaining players should hang their heads in embarrassment at losing to a Cardiff team who were themselves poor and offered nothing more than enthusiasm. How the coach can keep his job after overseeing that is beyond me.

Edinburgh suffered a late defeat away to Cardiff in the United Rugby Championship as a late penalty handed Sean Everitt's side a 20-19 defeat.

Share your views on the performance.

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Dempsey back with a bang

How good for Glasgow Warriors fans, and indeed Scotland fans, to see Jack Dempsey back fit and firing after a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Despite seven months out with a hamstring injury, the number eight looked like he had barely missed a beat as he delivered a man-of-the-match display against the Bulls that featured plenty of his trademark powerful ball carrying.

That will be an important weapon for Scotland this autumn, not least in that standout match against the All Blacks.

Sione shows his class

Sione Tuipulotu will have better games this season, but that is more to do with his exceptionally high ceiling than any shortcomings on display against the Bulls.

The British and Irish Lions centre was at the heart of everything Glasgow were doing in attack, filling the second playmaker role as he does to such great effect while also providing crucial go forward against a mean Bulls defence.

The Scotland captain looks to be coming to the boil nicely before the autumn internationals, and having not played for his country since the victory over Australia last November, you can bet he will be chomping at the bit to run out in blue again at Murrayfield.

Cummings comes to the fore

When Scott Cummings burst through the Bulls defence in the first few minutes of the match, a break that ultimately led to Tuipulotu's opening try, it seemed he had set the Warriors on course for a big win.

The Bulls ensured it was far from comfortable, but Cummings' performance in carrying the fight to the physical South Africans was excellent.

The big lock recovered from a ropey first performance in Lions red to enjoy a positive tour in the summer, despite not managing to force his way into the Test reckoning.

His loss to injury in the last Six Nations was felt possibly just as much by Scotland as Tuipulotu's, and his second-row partnership with Max Williamson looks ready made for the Test arena this November.

Glasgow Warriors moved top of the United Rugby Championship table before the rest of the weekend fixtures with a gritty victory over Bulls at Scotstoun.

Read the match report

Have your say

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Glasgow head coach Franco Smith tells BBC Scotland: "This tournament is tough and hard. Bulls were on it tonight, they were physical and well organised.

"The try that was chalked off was a big moment, but I believe we would have continued with the plan until the end.

"As the squad get more experienced, they don't get flustered so easily.

"That's what Scotstoun does - it's good to reward them with a win.

"We've been growing and building confidence, making the players ready from a technical and physical perspective."

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Scotland wings Duhan van der Merwe and Darcy Graham will both miss Edinburgh's URC trip to Cardiff on Saturday with injuries sustained in last week's victory against Benetton.

Van der Merwe went off with a bruised heel after scoring the opening try against the Italian side, while Graham played on and scored twice after hurting his knee.

Edinburgh say both players are expected to recover for Scotland's autumn internationals and are replaced for Saturday's match by Ross McCann and Lewis Wells.

Marshall Sykes is the other change to the Edinburgh side - he returns from injury to partner Grant Gilchrist in the second row.

Matt Davidson could make his Edinburgh debut off the bench, while Callum Hunter-Hill could make his first appearance of the season having returned to Edinburgh in the summer.

"It's always a test going away in the URC, and Saturday will be no different against a side that have started the season well," Everitt said.

"They're unbeaten at home, and kick really well, so we'll need to be at our best to get the result we want to finish this first block on a high."

Edinburgh XV to face Cardiff: Goosen, McCann, O'Conor, Lang, Wells, Scott, Shiel; Schoeman, Ashman, Rae, Sykes, Gilchrist, McConnell, Richardson, Bradbury.

Replacements: Harrison, Venter, Hill, Hunter-Hill, Crosbie, Vellacott, Thompson, Davidson.

Tom English
BBC Scotland's chief sports writer

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In announcing Gemma Fay as their first managing director of women's rugby, the press release from Scottish Rugby catalogued Fay's achievements, as they saw it, in her previous roles at Murrayfield.

Fay, it would appear, is responsible for everything good that has happened in the women's game since her switch from football in 2018 and none of the bad. The not so good is airbrushed.

The statement says: "Since the establishment of the women's and girls' strategy, registered female player numbers have risen from 6,173 to over 9,800, reflecting unprecedented participation growth."

That's an achievement, for sure, but many, many people have played a part in it. It's also growth that needs to be built on.

The SRU's recent plan for the development of the game in Scotland looks decent in theory, if very light on financial detail. It's Fay's job now to execute that plan. It's a critical job.

More than one current player has privately expressed not shock at the appointment, because they suspected it was coming, but something approaching dismay.

Fay, in her previous role as head of women's and girl's strategy, was, to put it diplomatically, a contentious figure for many of the current squad and those who have recently retired.

Whether those are personal gripes or professional criticisms is debatable, but Fay is a controversial character.

After what they call an "extensive recruitment" process, Scottish Rugby have given the managing director's job to the person down the corridor. Initial reaction from some players is not wholly enthusiastic about the appointment.

Fay will be responsible for the expansion and professionalism of the women's game, from grassroots to elite programmes.

The former Scotland goalkeeper is charged with strategic development, commercialisation and financial budget management.

She also joins the SRU's senior leadership team. It's quite a list of responsibilities. Alex Williamson, chief executive, and David Nucifora, performance director, clearly think a lot of Fay.

They credit her with being instrumental in "transforming the landscape" in women's and girl's rugby across the community game and into high-performance rugby.

Some within the sport would argue things have advanced but that nothing has been transformed. The vast majority of Scotland internationals play in England because the 'landscape' in Scotland is still a mile away from professional level.

Scottish Rugby mention full-time contracts were given out on Fay's watch while making no reference to the huge controversy of so many international players finding out those contracts were not being renewed just prior to the World Cup.

Record attendances were mentioned in the statement announcing Fay's elevation with no reference to the part the players and Bryan Easson, the departed coach, played in that.

The establishment of the Celtic Challenge was also put down as a positive, which it would be, if Glasgow and Edinburgh weren't performing so dismally in it.

Nucifora is not the type of character to suffer fools so in getting his support Fay must have impressed. That won't have been easy - nor will the myriad things she must now do to drive the game forward.

Following the redistribution of professional contracts - with some established players retiring or losing deals - there are real concerns about the number of Test-quality players Scotland will have in the Six Nations next year.

That's now Fay's responsibility. She's running the show. Her rise is not unexpected, but she has much to prove.

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Scotland number eight Jack Dempsey will make his first Glasgow Warriors appearance since January after being named in the starting XV to take on the Bulls at Scotstoun on Friday.

The fit-again 31-year-old was a late withdrawal before the club's opening-round URC victory over the Sharks last month.

Scotland prop Jamie Bhatti also returns to the starting line-up against last season's runners-up after missing the past two matches.

Head coach Franco Smith makes five changes from the 42-17 win away to Ospreys.

Scott Cummings comes into the second row, while Dempsey's inclusion means Matt Fagerson shifts to the openside flank, with Gregor Brown on blindside.

Alex Samuel and Euan Ferrie rotate to the bench after starting last time out.

Behind the scrum, George Horne replaces Jamie Dobie at scrum-half, with Josh McKay returning to the line-up at full-back in place of Ollie Smith.

Dobie, Smith and prop Patrick Schickerling drop out of the squad this week.

Seb Stephen will make his first appearance at Scotstoun should the hooker come off the bench, the Scotland Under-20 standout having impressed during his brief cameo in Bridgend last Saturday.

That victory took Warriors up to third in the table, three places above Bulls, and coach Smith told his club website: "The players are now starting to find their way and hitting their straps.

"It's the start of the season, so it takes a while for all the engines to start up."

Next up is a repeat of the 2024 URC grand final.

"We know we must be at our best as we look to finish the first block of fixtures on a high," Smith added.

"The Bulls possess one of the strongest and deepest squads in the URC and are consistent in the quality of performances they produce."

Glasgow Warriors: Josh McKay, Kyle Steyn (capt), Stafford McDowall, Sione Tuipulotu, Kyle Rowe; Adam Hastings, George Horne; Jamie Bhatti, Johnny Matthews, Murphy Walker, Max Williamson, Scott Cummings, Gregor Brown, Matt Fagerson, Jack Dempsey.

Replacements: Seb Stephen, Nathan McBeth, Sam Talakai, Alex Samuel, Alex Craig, Euan Ferrie, Ben Afshar, Dan Lancaster.