Six Nations: A battle of Fin(n)s in England vs Scotland; Wales vow to play brave vs Ireland in Cardiff | Rugby Union News

We hear from all four camps ahead of a bumper Six Nations round of Saturday fixtures between all nations involved on the summer’s British and Irish Lions tour to Australia: England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales…

Lawrence: No pressure on Fin Smith to outshine Scotland’s Russell at Twickenham

England centre Ollie Lawrence insists Fin Smith is not under pressure to outshine “world-class” Scotland fly-half Finn Russell during a pivotal Calcutta Cup clash at Twickenham.

An intriguing subplot to Saturday’s Six Nations showdown is the battle at No 10 as Test rookie Smith seeks to build on his starring role in the thrilling 26-25 win over France on his full international debut.

Rival out-half Russell, who has recovered from a head injury to feature at Allianz Stadium Twickenham, is vastly more experienced and regarded by many as the leading candidate to start for the British and Irish Lions in Australia this summer, live on Sky Sports.

Lawrence has close links with both men, having been a role model to England team-mate Smith at former club Worcester before Russell joined his current side Bath in 2023.

“I don’t really think there’s too much pressure on Fin; certainly we aren’t putting pressure on him to step up or anything like that,” said Lawrence.

“The way he played against France and controlled the game put us in the right areas of the field. He managed to set up that try [for Elliot Daly] at the end, which was testament to how he’s come on as a player.

“Finn Russell is a world-class 10, a great player and I’ve got a huge amount of respect for him. But equally I’m definitely not looking at Fin and saying he has to match the other Finn during the game.

“He’ll do his thing, he’s a confident lad and we’ll back him all the way. He has so much more potential and so much more to show in an England jersey.”

Smith, 22, has another chance to pull the strings for England following head coach Steve Borthwick’s decision to keep fellow fly-half Marcus Smith at full-back.

“Sometimes Finn [Russell] is in his own world and he can make things happen that not everybody else can see,” Lawrence added.

“One of his strengths is that he can create something out of nothing. He’s a skill player, he’s got a great passing game, great kicking game.

“He can do things off the cuff but he is able to execute things he’s already seen pictures of, that teams have done before and he’s world class at doing it.

“It’s going to be a challenge going up against him but it was the same with (Antoine) Dupont, another world-class player. If you put pressure on them then you can force them to make errors and that’s the plan on Saturday.”

Townsend: Russell the key man for Scotland vs England

Russell has a “big role” to play after being passed fit as Scotland seek a record fifth straight Calcutta Cup victory against England, according to head coach Gregor Townsend.

The fly-half was substituted with a concussion during the defeat to Ireland two weeks ago after clashing heads with team-mate Darcy Graham, who despite having observed a 12-day concussion protocol will not play at Twickenham on Saturday.

Townsend has been beaten only once by England during his tenure and will be looking to his No 10 Russell to inspire a response after the disappointment of the loss to Ireland.

Scotland have won the last four Six Nations meetings between the sides, including a 30-21 victory in 2024, but sit fourth in this year’s standings after two matches and face a potentially campaign-defining game against Borthwick’s side.

“They’ve been really good games [against England], I think they’ve been open and when they have been open your 10 has got a big role to play in that,” said Townsend. “[Russell] has enjoyed those games that have gone to the wire as well.

“This is a very tough fixture. Playing at Twickenham is always one of our hardest games, and in recent years we’ve got on the right side of the result but they’ve been very close games and we’ve had to play very well to get those wins.

“I’m not sure if there was a fear factor [around Twickenham], just a place that over history has been very tough for us because England are always a strong team.

“This group of players have had the experience of winning at Twickenham which can help as you prepare for the game, but the reality is what happens in 80 minutes.”

Sherratt: Wales won’t die wondering against Ireland

Wales interim head coach Matt Sherratt wants his team to be brave and not “die wondering” against Six Nations title favourites Ireland in Cardiff on Saturday.

Wales begin life after Warren Gatland with Cardiff boss Sherratt taking the reins for three games only – Ireland, Scotland at Murrayfield and then England in Cardiff.

A run of 14 successive Test defeats has contributed heavily to Wales being written off as 25/1 no-hopers by some bookmakers when Triple Crown-chasing Ireland arrive at the Principality Stadium.

“I want the players to be brave. If they see space, I don’t want us to die wondering,” Sherratt said. “If there is an error, there is an error. I can coach that in the week. It is having a system that we stick to.

“I’ve been in the game long enough now, I am not going to just say go out and have a crack, as that gets messy. We have worked really hard in the week on how we find and keep shape.

“There will be 15 players on the field that are desperate to represent their country. That is all we are focused on, not any chat from outside of camp.

“It is a game of rugby ultimately – a game of rugby with 80,000 people watching it, and a lot more interest – but when you boil it down it is still just the same as a club game.

“It will be faster, there is more pressure, the collisions will be bigger, but that word ‘opportunity’ is the one we used when we were speaking to the players. We don’t want them to get bogged down with everything around the game.

“I have told the players the overwhelming advice I’ve had is to be authentic and enjoy the experience. I said I would give them the same advice.”

Wales-linked Ireland interim head coach Easterby: Ireland role my dream job

Simon Easterby insists he is committed to Ireland in response to reports he is a contender to take over from departed Wales boss Gatland.

Easterby is overseeing Ireland while Andy Farrell prepares for the upcoming British and Irish Lions tour and has so far impressed by claiming emphatic victories over England and Scotland.

Easterby, who lives in Swansea and played for and coached the Scarlets, heads to the Principality Stadium amid speculation he is an option to succeed Gatland.

However, the 49-year-old says he has yet to be approached by the Welsh Rugby Union.

“I love what I do here. For me it’s a dream job,” Ireland’s interim head coach said. “I’ve been in this position with the team for a long time and I’m very fortunate with the people I get to work with, both management and players.

“Speculation is exactly that – it’s speculation and not something I can control. Right now this is my only focus.

“What happens in the future… in a year’s time you could lose your job and we know in sport it’s fairly fluid around people moving from thing to thing. But whatever is going on, I’ve had no contact with the WRU.

“For me, it’s all guns blazing towards Cardiff on Saturday and making sure that me and the other coaches prepare the team.”

The Artur Beterbiev v Dmitry Bivol rematch will be live on Saturday February 22 on Sky Sports Box Office. Book now!