Scotland v England: Pivotal Calcutta Cup clash pits England as underdogs

Scotland would come down to headquarters, or attempt to defend their Murrayfield ramparts, and get close to their auld enemy but not close enough, and it would be the men in white shirts celebrating come the end of 80 minutes of blood and thunder.

Even when England were not at their best, they generally seemed to have enough.

And then it began to turn, so much so that even after a World Cup which saw England reach the semi-finals and Scotland not get out of the group, it is Gregor Townsend’s Scots who are firm favourites to win the 142nd instalment of the grand old rivalry in Edinburgh on Saturday teatime.

That Scotland couldn’t get out of their group in France in the autumn said more about the strength of their opponents in South Africa and Ireland, than anything else, while England were making the most of a significantly weaker half of the draw before themselves running into the Springboks.

Make no mistake, Scotland are favourites today, but how long can they sustain this dominance over England, and what, ultimately, will it lead to, because as yet – the answer is nothing.

They have won their last three Tests against the ‘Auld Enemy’, whose victory in 2020 is their only triumph in the last six meetings between the two.

The games have been ferociously competitive but Scotland are simply a better team, having turned a one-sided rivalry on its head.

Townsend admitted that the history and emotion of a clash with England made it Scotland’s “most important game of the season”, but the head coach also knows that settling old scores is only part of the bigger picture.

A golden generation in the nation’s rugby history, epitomised by their fly-half genius Finn Russell, is in danger of passing without winning any silverware and after the injustice of seeing a late match-winning try disallowed against France in round two, they can not afford any more slip ups.

Time is running out for Russell’s Scotland to prove they are a serious team.

England, for all they were fortunate with their path in France, still finished third and have won their opening two games of this year’s Six Nations. Only Ireland have a better record.

They are a side in transition, albeit one that is finding ways to win games of rugby.

The Red Rose is attempting to evolve its attack and get to grips with a new blitz defence that has so far benefitted from facing the Six Nations’ two weakest sides in Italy and Wales, with a combined winning margin of five points.

The level of competition cranks up significantly on Saturday and this is as much an important fixture for Borthwick’s resilient side, as it is for Townsend’s.

England’s head coach has never been adverse to throwing curve balls in selection – think Marcus Smith at full-back, Alex Mitchell starting at scrum-half at the World Cup – and the latest example is George Furbank’s return at full-back.

Freddie Steward controls the air against any opposition but Borthwick has cast aside England’s safety blanket in favour of a more natural ball player who will provide a counter-attacking threat and greater mobility in defence.

Promoting Furbank is a bold call and even if the six caps won between 2020 to 2022 failed to provide compelling evidence of his Test pedigree, he is an exciting pick who has been on fire for Northampton Saints this season.

England take a more balanced backline to Edinburgh after recalling Ollie Lawrence at inside centre. For the first time in this Six Nations there will be genuine ball-carrying clout in midfield after Lawrence recovered from the hip injury that ruled him out of the wins against Italy and Wales.

In the words of assistant coach Kevin Sinfield, the powerful Bath runner is “ready to kick the door down” and it will be hoped he can provide a counter weight to the similarly physical Sione Tuipulotu.

It is a heavyweight collision that could well influence the outcome of the match.

Calcutta Cups by their very nature can be fraught affairs, often decided by the narrowest of margins but coming as it does in the middle of this year’s Six Nations, with two teams at different but pivotal moments in their journeys, it has the mouthwatering feel of a clash that will shape their respective championships.